


Not Enough

by HappyCamper41



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Akumatized Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bad Parent Gabriel Agreste, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Identity Reveal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-03
Updated: 2019-05-03
Packaged: 2020-01-01 08:27:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 18
Words: 36,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18332348
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HappyCamper41/pseuds/HappyCamper41
Summary: After the events of Heroes' Day, a regrettable exhange between a drunken father and an inquiring son leaves the latter in a state of despair...An opportunity that Gabriel Agreste won't miss out on. After all, the boy will thank him later. What's important, more than anything, is bringing back Emilie.





	1. Chapter 1

I.

 

Disappointment was a feeling Gabriel Agreste had grown accustomed to. Years of trying to save his wife from the Peacock’s wrath had ended in disappointment, and his new status as Paris’s most wanted was yet to yield him any results. No matter how many times he tried and no matter how inspired his creations were, he always lost. Even with the ability to send literally unlimited akumas at the same time, even with control of  _ three _ evilized heroes to back him up, Paris’s dynamic duo managed to thwart him. And now he faced the chilling reality that Nathalie, the only other person on the planet who knew of his intentions, was now risking the same fate as his dear Emilie.

 

_ Nathalie _ . The designer paused in his work, contemplating his only true confidant, currently seated on the other side of his office, dutifully completing all of her assignments, despite Gabriel’s offer that she take the rest of the day off. Today, she had proved that not only was she fiercely loyal to his cause, she was perfectly willing to take matters into her own hands in order to assist him, even at her own expense. She had fully understood the risks of using the Peacock miraculous, yet had gone through with it anyways, ignoring his direct orders. Perhaps this was something beyond simple loyalty to himself and his wife…

 

Gabriel audibly sighed, too tired and too defeated from the day’s events to entertain such thoughts tonight. While the situation with Nathalie certainly required nuance, it didn’t demand any of his attention at this exact moment, and years of working in management had taught him that he wasn’t obligated to provide it. Especially since Nathalie herself seemed perfectly content to let it be, and move on with her work.

 

As if hearing his thoughts, Nathalie retired shortly thereafter, leaving Gabriel alone in his office, as was often the case, idly examining less than vibrant numbers regarding his fall line. 

 

Adrien had left without explanation at several recent photo shoots, forcing numerous reschedulings that would delay countless projects. This would result in the loss of thousands more euros in a company that was projected to barely turn a profit this quarter. It would seem that Gabriel Agreste wasn’t faring much better than his super-powered alter ego.

 

This bad news, combined with failure in nearly every other aspect of his life left the fashion mogul feeling more than a little sour, and several drinks late that night left him with both an awful headache and a burning anger that was ready to be unleashed on whatever unfortunate soul had the misfortune of encountering him.

 

If only it hadn’t been his son.

 

“-Father?” Adrien cautiously opened the door to the office, “Is this a bad time?”

 

Gabriel turned quickly, fixing Adrien with one of the most intense expressions the young model had ever seen. Something snapped in Gabriel, as all his feelings of disappointment about Adrien’s performance fused with his rage at the miraculous heroes.

 

“Regardless of how many times you half-ass it, your performance at your photoshoots is  _ dismal _ on the rare cases you decide to grace the crew with your presence.” Gabriel sneered, sarcasm dripping from his voice. “No matter how much money I invest in you, you continue to fail me and prove yourself to be nothing more than a liability for this company!” Gabriel continued, rising from his seat, the alcohol talking far more than the man himself.

 

“I am about to go to bed alone, in a house where the only family I have left is a living, breathing, reminder of  _ everything _ that I’ve lost!” Gabriel advanced towards the boy, maintaining an accusatory glare.

 

“S-sorry…” Adrien trailed off, eyes widening in shock. He had never been afraid of his father before, “I was just checking on you after all of today’s akumas-”

 

“Do I look okay!?” Gabriel shouted, the mention of the day’s failures only furthering his anger at the boy. The usually elegant designer demonstrated surprising strength in lifting a nearby mannequin and promptly slamming it against the hard floor of his colorless office, the man unflinching even as it shattered into thousands of tiny pieces. 

 

“Why did it have to be you that’s still here!?” Gabriel snarled, redirecting his hateful gaze back at Adrien.

 

Rather than responding, Adrien backed away in fear, retreating from the door he had entered through. Gabriel could hear the sound of sprinting footsteps fading away as the boy presumably ran to his room for sanctuary. As soon as he was alone, Gabriel fell to his knees in shame, the full weight of everything he had said and done sinking in. Despite his usual composure, Gabriel was unable to hold back the buildup of tears in his cerulean eyes.

 

“Master?” Nooroo inquired cautiously, emerging from Gabriel’s jacket, a look of concern on the small kwami’s face.

 

Gabriel ignored him, hanging his head. He had invoked the boy’s mother in anger, something that was certain to stick with both of them. Moreover, he had let his anger become physical, and had Adrien not left the situation, things could’ve been a lot worse. 

 

No child should ever have to flee their own parent.

 

Nooroo looked like he was about to speak again, when something caught the purple kwami’s eye. Gabriel was staring at it as well. A strange light was emitting from the brooch on the designer’s suit, a light that could mean only one thing: it was time for Hawkmoth’s return. 

 

His unchecked anger had left him with a rare opportunity to choose a champion Hawkmoth already knew was competent. Even if the boy hated him forever, having his mother back would be more than enough… 

 

At least that’s what Gabriel needed to think so he could rationalize it. Hawkmoth could have no such doubts.

 

**********

 

“He did what!?” Plagg hissed, after Adrien’s retelling of the events downstairs. “Let me at him! Give me one minute and his entire existence will be-”

 

“Don’t.” Adrien interrupted, his voice hoarse, as he had been crying since the moment he left his father’s office, “We can’t do that.” 

 

“He. Could. Have. Hurt. You.” The kwami snarled, “We can’t just do nothing!”

 

Plagg’s words seemed to be lost on his charge, as Adrien laid flat on his back, staring up at his ceiling. Despite the absolutely tremendous size of the boy’s room, and the incredible supply of anything and everything material he could want, Adrien was lacking the only thing he’d truly needed since he’d lost his mother: his father. And it wasn’t in the boy’s nature to blame others. Despite Gabriel’s abhorrent conduct downstairs, all Adrien could consider was the times that he had failed his father, and it didn’t take long for Adrien to justify his father’s actions to himself.

 

“He’s right though.” The teen sobbed, thinking back on all of the times that he’d abandoned photoshoots or his other responsibilities. “I’m constantly running off to become Cat Noir, and ignoring the only thing that matters to him. Modelling.”

 

The cold realization that his father’s love was connected entirely to the company him hit the boy like a train, as he idly examined a small family picture from several years prior that he kept on one of his shelves, where all three of the Agrestes looked truly happy. If he did more of the things Gabriel wanted, he might be able to change things. If he could somehow balance all the aspects of his life, and make enough time, he’d be worthy of being loved. He could be a better Cat Noir that Ladybug would fall for. His family could go back to the way that it was. If he could just- 

 

“Like hell he’s right!” Plagg snapped, enraged by the boy’s complacency, “It doesn’t matter if-” The kwami’s eyes widened in horror, as he spotted a familiar looking black butterfly enter through the window.

 

“Adrien!” Plagg exclaimed in desperation, but it was too late. The tiny kwami was powerless to stop the butterfly from entering the happy picture Adrien was clenching, and the emblem of Hawkmoth appearing across his face.

 

Adrien’s entire world stopped. He could feel his sense of identity slipping away, and he was no longer inside his room. He wasn’t anywhere. The only thing left, the only thing that mattered, was the powerful voice of Hawkmoth forcing its way into his thoughts. That and his desire to earn his father’s love.

 

“Rebel Child, I am Hawkmoth.” Adrien stood at attention, eager.

 

“I’m giving you the power to get revenge on your father.” Hawkmoth explained quietly.

 

“Revenge?” Adrien was perplexed. “Why would I want revenge on Father?”

 

It was Hawkmoth’s turn to be confused. He hadn’t examined the boy’s emotions before striking, merely assuming that Adrien would want to harm him for the way he had acted. Pausing for a moment to probe his son, Hawkmoth was shocked and somewhat moved to find no such urge. Instead, Adrien was simply seeking validation. 

 

Rather than seeking revenge, Adrien simply wanted his love.

 

“Let’s try this again then.” Hawkmoth said after a long pause. “ _ Model Son _ . I’m giving you the power to handle all the activities your father forces you into and then some. Soon he will see just what he’s missing.”

 

“I’ll-” Adrien hesitated, thinking of Ladybug, but Hawkmoth’s promise about his father quickly dispelled any doubts, “I’ll do anything!”

 

“Good.” Hawkmoth affirmed, “I’ll just need one thing in return…”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ladybug and Model Son duke it out.

II.

 

Marinette awoke to a loud, piercing sound emitting from her phone that she recognized to be an akuma alert. She audibly groaned, uncertain of the exact time, but certain that it was well before she wanted to get up on a Saturday. Unfortunately, Hawkmoth often chose the worst possible times to strike, certainly hoping to catch them off guard by depriving them of their sleep and disrupting their schedules. She probably would’ve ignored it and gone back to sleep were it not for the soft tug of something small and red on her cheek.

 

“Tikki…” She protested, grateful when the kwami relented, “Just a few minutes…”

 

“Marinette!” She exclaimed, “We can’t afford to wait, you need to transform!”

 

“We fought like… a ton of akumas yesterday.” She countered, referring to the incident with Mayura, “Haven’t we earned a break?”

 

After a quick round of additional persuasion, the dark-haired teenager finally rose from her slumber, climbing up onto her balcony before uttering her familiar transformation phrase.

 

Swinging through the cold autumn air in the middle of the night was enough to have Ladybug fully awake before she arrived on the scene of the attack. She perched on a nearby rooftop before looking down at the situation, blinking twice as she processed the events unfolding below her.

 

A large crowd of civilians were gathered, seemingly hypnotized, around a large stage that had been assembled in the middle of the street. The night sky was being continually lit up by endless camera flashes, all directed at a lone male figure that was posing atop the stage who Ladybug could only assume was the akumatized victim. Upon seeing the victim, however, Ladybug fell short of breath.

 

To call the boy stunning would be an understatement. The victim had long, blonde hair, and vibrant green eyes giving an intense enough stare that was enough for any girl to stop dead in her tracks. His body was perfectly toned, biceps showing through a tee shirt that was  _ just  _ tight enough to show off without being over the top.

 

But before the spotted heroine could fully process the sight before her, the boy shifted, his outfit changing from a casual tee shirt and jeans to a walking, talking formal menswear advertisement, with a perfectly fitting black tuxedo and a bowtie. Simultaneously, the boy’s hair shifted into a more dignified style from his previous roguish look. A sense of familiarity swept over Ladybug, as she spotted a  _ Gabriel _ brand logo on the stage, confirming that the victim was indeed her longtime crush.

 

“Adrien!” She called out, and the scene froze. 

 

The model in question looked up at her, and a sense of dread washed over her. His eyes seemed to pierce her, as they examined her from top to bottom, the distance between them seemingly irrelevant. What was initially surprise on Adrien’s face at hearing his name yelled turned into what seemed to be… wonder.

 

“Ladybug!” He cheerfully called back to her, as the crowd of hypnotized people parted, giving superhero and villain a clearer view of one another, “The name’s  _ Model Son _ now, but you can call me whatever you want.” She was surprised to see him beam sweetly, not even the faintest trace of malice on his face.

 

The fear of an akumatized Adrien had been enough to cause her to lose sleep before. She was always afraid that she wouldn’t be able to fight him, and that was even before he started  _ hitting _ on her. She swallowed, keeping her focus intact, knowing full well that she couldn’t afford to let herself get distracted.

 

“Just hand me your akumatized object, and we can all go home.” She said, putting as much  _ superhero authority _ into her voice as she could muster, “The Adrien I...’ve met wouldn’t do this.” She winced, realizing how close she had come to saying ‘The Adrien I know.’

 

“The Adrien  _ you’ve met _ was weak!” Model Son snapped back, his cheerful demeanor morphing into anger, “Too weak to win over the girl he loved, too weak to save his mother! If I get your miraculous, I can finally show my father that I’m good enough!”

 

Marinette’s heart broke as she heard her crush bare his insecurities to the world. She silently cursed herself for not seeing how much he was hurting before this. It had been just this afternoon that he called her their ‘everyday Ladybug,’ and she managed to kiss his cheek. He had seemed so happy then, was that why he was so upset…

 

Ladybug shook her head, dismissing these thoughts. These weren’t the kinds of things she could afford to dwell on right now. Right now, all that mattered was saving Adrien and getting him home safely. She jumped down from the roof, landing in front of the stage, and matching Model Son’s intense stare. Much to her surprise, Model Son backed away, eyes widening in what seemed to be fear.

 

“Just give me the akuma.” She demanded, extending her hand and climbing onto the stage to approach him.

 

Model Son opened his mouth to speak, indecision written all over his features, when Hawkmoth’s signature purple outline appeared on his face. A moment later, Model Son’s confidence seemed to return, and his fearful expression contorted into a sneer.

 

“Never!” He snarled.

 

Ladybug narrowly dodged as Model Son lunged forward, his tuxedo shifting into a fencing uniform, complete with a matching saber in his hand. He slashed and stabbed several times, forcing Ladybug to either dodge or use her yoyo as a spinning shield. The two clashed for what felt like an eternity but probably wasn’t more than twenty seconds. Model Son demonstrated speed and dexterity far beyond what Marinette had observed while ‘researching’ Adrien at fencing matches, certainly the result of Hawkmoth’s enhancements.

 

“Where are you, Chat Noir?” She hissed, just now noticing her partner’s absence. Sword fights had always been much more up his alley, as the metal baton was much better suited for repelling attacks at this range.

 

Her doubts about her weapon were proven valid when Model Son’s blade feinted to her right, and then stabbed straight through her defences on the left after she contorted to match his initial blow. Ladybug cried out in pain as the saber pierced her suit. Tikki’s power was usually enough to protect her from these types of injuries, so the realization that her defences could be penetrated was beyond terrifying.

 

Ladybug fell to her knees, her yoyo strewn about on the ground around her. The heroine braced herself for the next blow, but was surprised to see that Model Son’s eyes had widened in shock. His expression betrayed a certain horror about his actions, as his eyes shifted between the fallen hero and the red-tinted blade of his saber that was glistening in the pale moonlight.

 

His indecision was all the opportunity she needed. Swallowing her pain for the moment, the spotted heroine swept Adrien’s feet out from under him, eliciting a yelp of surprise, giving her the chance to roll back and off of the stage. The drop gave her enough space to land on her feet and retract her yoyo.

 

“I know you’re in there Adrien!” She shouted confidently, but the emotional reaction the boy had demonstrated at her injury had completely vanished, replaced with the now familiar rage-contorted sneer.

 

“Get back here!” He cried, jumping after her.

 

Adrien made a powerful akuma, no doubt about it, and the absence of her feline friend only amplified her problems. And as the fight dragged on, Model Son revealed that he had numerous other forms, all just as dangerous as his fencing gear. He could transform into his basketball uniform and spawn in dozens of high-speed basketballs that would’ve instantly knocked out anybody who wasn’t magically protected. Ladybug gritted her teeth, trying her best to swallow the pain that the impact still caused.

 

His piano playing loadout was surprisingly dangerous. Ladybug had been expecting a bit of a break, since seriously, how could a piano player be dangerous? But when the magical piano was summoned, she was caught off guard when each keystroke unleashed a devastating shockwave that shook her entire body to the point of nearly throwing up where she stood. She had to admit that she was impressed by the completely perfect rendition of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, however.

 

“Just… You need to…” Ladybug was dizzy, struggling to think coherently, as Model Son switched back to how he appeared initially: a dazzling supermodel. Despite her pain from the now various injuries he had inflicted, the Marinette in her was still taken aback by just how good-looking Adrien Agreste could be.

 

“You see?” He said, surprisingly earnest in his excitement. “I’m finally good enough!”

 

“You were always enough.” She snapped, fully meaning it. Her heart seemed to clench in her chest at the thought of her beloved crush ever thinking that he wasn’t good enough. She was going to be having words with Gabriel Agreste after this.

 

“Not for father.” Model Son remarked, sadness etched into his face, “Not unless I bring more money in for the company. Not enough for you, either.”

 

_ What? _ Marinette’s mind raced, ignoring the lingering pain from the onslaught of attacks she had endured. Not enough for her? What on Earth could that possibly mean? She quickly ran over her past interactions with Adrien while she was Ladybug, unable to figure out what he was talking about. The bit about his father made sense, but the heroine frowned as she began to question why Adrien would even care about being ‘good enough’ for Ladybug.

 

Her thoughts were interrupted when Model Son continued.

 

“I wasn’t enough for Mother, either.” He whispered, almost inaudibly, clenching a small, framed photograph in his hands, “Or else she would’ve stayed.”

 

Time seemed to freeze for a long moment, as neither of them spoke, tension seeming to crackle through the air between them. Ladybug desperately wanted to inquire further, and point out that he had his friends at school. Nino, Alya, herself, and even Chloe. He was good enough for them. But she knew that she couldn’t reveal how much she knew about his life, not with Hawkmoth listening. She also knew that despite how close he was with his friends, it wasn’t a substitute for having neither parent play a positive role in his life.

 

Model Son opened his mouth to speak again, but was swiftly interrupted when a dark energy swept over him, causing him to revert back to his pre-akumatized self. The dark butterfly fluttered near him briefly, before shifting back into its purified state, leaving a dazed Adrien still clenching the photograph.

 

**********

 

Within his lair, Hawkmoth fell to his knees, weeping. Having now fully sampled Adrien’s emotions, he was beyond stunned at just how deep the boy’s insecurities went. Gabriel had been ashamed to see just how much every missed piano performance or fencing match affected Adrien’s perception of his own self-worth. The realization that Adrien only believed that he was wanted for his financial value was a slap in the face.

 

He could weather all of that though. What Gabriel couldn’t handle, however, was when Adrien brought up Emilie. What should’ve been the perfect justification for his actions, seeing how much her absence damaged their son, left him with feelings of utter shame about leaving Adrien to face the loss alone.

 

Unable to handle all the pain, Hawkmoth severed his connection with Model Son, and detransformed immediately afterwards, allowing both father and son to revert back to their normal appearances. The tears poured out, dripping off of his face uncontrollably, leaving Nooroo at a loss for words.

 

The total sadness gave way for an even stronger resolve than before He would make this right. He would return Adrien’s mother to him, and after that, he would see to it that he was always there for him.

 

He just had to get those miraculous first.

 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ladybug and Adrien have a heart to heart, and Plagg reminisces about their time together.

III.

 

_ What just happened? _ Marinette blinked, as Adrien fell to his knees. Throughout dozens of battles, she had never seen an akuma just exit somebody like that before. Did Adrien manage to fight it off? Had Hawkmoth summoned it back? If so, why would he do that? Nothing seemed to make any sense.

 

Her confusion melted into concern almost instantly when she saw the look of shock and pain on Adrien’s face, prompting her to rush forward, embracing and nearly knocking him over. Now that the battle was over, all of her bottled-up anguish at seeing him like that was beginning to fizz over, as she wept into his shoulder. He flinched at the initial contact, before warmly returning the embrace.

 

“Ladybug?” He inquired, a definitely baffled note to his voice.

 

“It’s okay.” She squeezed him tighter, not caring about the mass of formerly hypnotized civilians looking on in confusion. “I’ve got you.”

 

“Did I…” His body tensed as he looked around, “Oh no! Your stomach!” He gasped as he looked down and saw the stab wound on her back. 

 

This unfortunately led to an end for their warm embrace, something that Marinette felt no small amount of disappointment over. She wiped the tears away from her eyes, then reached out to grasp his shoulders firmly before he could freak out. This forced him to stop gawking at the injuries in horror and shame, and instead direct his bright, emerald eyes right at her.

 

“Listen to me.” She said slowly, “This. Was. Not. Your. Fault.” Each syllable was accompanied by a subtle, but firm shake of his shoulders for emphasis. 

 

“I hurt you-” He began to tear up as well, but she interrupted him.

 

“I don’t want to hear it!” She insisted “The only person to blame here is Hawkmoth.” Both of their cheeks reddened a little bit as they realized just how close their faces were. Were she in her civilian form, or if the situation didn’t require her to keep her composure, her heart probably would’ve stopped from all the physical contact.

 

“Besides, I can fix it anyways.” She stood back up to full height, throwing her yoyo above her head, exclaiming “Miraculous Ladybug!”

 

The magical red ladybugs swept across the cityblock, removing the giant stage and any other signs of Model Son’s presence, before sweeping over Ladybug herself and providing her with an immediate sense of relief when all of her injuries were instantly healed. The formerly hypnotized civilians all cheered, making Ladybug aware of their presence, and of the fact that she needed to continue this conversation in private.

 

Adrien let out a surprised yelp as she picked him up bridal style and swung away, into the crisp autumn night, over to the rooftop of the Notre Dame Cathedral.

 

“I’m so sorry.” Adrien whispered through his tears, “I didn’t realize… I’d gotten so low…” Akuma victims often felt shame for their actions, but Ladybug was fairly confident she’d never seen anybody get  _ this _ upset before.

 

“And I won’t accept that apology.” Ladybug shot back, “Not when you’ve done  _ nothing _ wrong.  _ At all _ .”

 

“It’s just…” Adrien trailed off, rubbing his eyes even more, “I had a really awful fight with my father, and he said some things I wasn’t ready for.”

 

“What kinds of  _ things _ ?” Ladybug could feel her anger boiling up, but quickly buried it when she saw the uncomfortable face on the young model. “I-I mean, if you’re okay with telling me about them…”

 

He really didn’t want to talk about it. He wanted to just ignore it, and move on. He wanted to pretend that none of this had ever happened, that he had never been so weak as to give into Hawkmoth and attack his lady. But as tempting as that was, he knew that he needed to tell somebody, and he trusted her to keep it between them.

 

“I went in to check on him, after all of the akumas today.” Adrien began, “I hadn’t seen him all day, and I was little bit worried.” He hesitated a bit before continuing, “I think he was a little bit drunk, and he really lashed out about me missing a lot of photoshoots lately.”

 

“Ass.” Ladybug thought out loud, then turned bright red when she realized Adrien had heard her, “Sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt. Go on.” She coughed twice.

 

“He brought up my mother…” Adrien winced, “And he told me that he wished I was the one who had disappeared.” 

 

“...Excuse me?” Ladybug’s eyes narrowed, and Adrien almost trembled. He’d seen this girl angry before. After all, his teasing while Chat Noir often annoyed her, but he quickly realized that he’d seen  _ nothing _ . The campfire in her eyes when she shut down her partner paled in comparison to the full on  _ wildfire _ she currently kindled.

 

“H-He said he wished I had been lost, and not mother-” Adrien tried, but was cut off before he could finish by Ladybug rushing and grabbing him, jumping off of the rooftop and swinging straight towards the Agreste mansion.

 

**********

 

Anger was too mild of a word to describe how Plagg felt. Raw, unfiltered hatred was closer to the mark, but still didn’t quite quantify just how livid the small black kwami was about seeing his chosen getting akumatized. The only emotion that came even close to matching Plagg’s rage was his fear for the boy’s safety. While Plagg trusted Ladybug to handle the situation, there was a very real possibility that Adrien’s identity could be compromised. 

 

Were it not for the akuma, Plagg would’ve been supportive of Adrien lashing out at his father, but Plagg wasn’t even granted that wish. Instead of causing trouble and rebelling, Adrien’s akumatized form was ultimately even more submissive to his father’s demands.

 

Plagg growled audibly, floating around Gabriel’s office, not sure what he was going to do once he found the pathetic excuse for a father figure, but one thing was certain: It wasn’t going to be pretty. Plagg concluded after a quick sweep of the room that Gabriel had most likely retired for the night, and was about to fly towards the bastard’s room, when a gigantic portrait of Adrien gave him pause.

 

The boy was not a cat. Not at all. Cats were territorial, petty, and scratched back when they were picked on. The beaming Adrien portrayed on his father’s office wall, by contrast, was a gentleman, eager to please, and self-blaming in most cases of conflict. Cats could always read the room, and just chose to be jerks and cause trouble for the people they loved. Adrien was simply clueless in most social settings. Especially when it came to girls.

 

Plagg groaned when he thought about Adrien’s interactions with both Ladybug and her civilian identity. Damn that Master Fu and his insistence on secrets! If they just knew who each other were, Adrien could finally be happy. 

 

Plagg cared about the kid a lot. Despite lacking the feline behaviors he had come to expect from the chosen Chat Noirs, Adrien awakened a deep-rooted, paternalistic instinct Plagg hadn’t felt in many years. Especially since Adrien’s actual father fell short of the title nine times out of ten. Plagg was bad at being emotionally supportive, however, and he had no idea why Master Fu thought the two of them would be a good match. He had to admit (not out loud), however, he liked the kid a lot. Such a refreshing change from the vast collection of cold and brooding cats Plagg had come to know and love over the years. 

 

The events of the previous day had been nothing short of spectacular. Getting a front row seat of Adrien and Marinette taking down dozens of akumas at once was one of the proudest moments in the kwami’s several billion year existence. The look of shock on Hawkmoth’s face when the hero’s confronted him had been… perfect. And to top it all off, Ladybug’s civilian identity had finally worked up the courage to talk to Adrien at the picnic. To think that the day had to end so poorly after such great highlights...

 

Gazing at Adrien’s portrait, Plagg’s anger began to simmer down, and his whole body contorted as he audibly sighed. As much as he wanted to incinerate Gabriel Agreste, he knew that Adrien would never approve, and that killing the boy’s father would destroy their relationship. 

 

“Damn it kid…” Plagg said out loud, “It would’ve been so easy, too.”

 

Plagg briefly fantasized about somehow getting the mild-mannered teen to run away from home. After Ladybug saved him from Hawkmoth, she would certainly take him home. The two of them could be on a plane in a matter of hours, all of the ‘superhero responsibilities’ and neglectful fathers far behind them. The weather would be warmer, and the camembert would be unlimited! As for a possible destination, Plagg had always loved the American West. Granted, the last time he had been there, Chat Noirs were constantly getting into duels when the town wasn’t big enough for multiple people, and Adrien probably couldn’t handle that type of conflict. Eh, whatever. Plagg could handle that for him. They could-

 

While Plagg was in fantasy land, a distraught Gabriel emerged from his lair, even more despondent than he’d been earlier that night. Were it not for the fact that he himself was Hawkmoth, he’d be worried about getting akumatized. As it was, he wasn’t sure how he was going to face Adrien once he returned home. He considered embracing him, since it had gone so well at his fashion show a few weeks ago.

 

The sight of the black cat kwami, however, was enough to interrupt his train of thought, and he had to stifle a horrified gasp the moment he laid eyes on him. Had he been discovered???

 

However, Plagg didn’t seem to notice him, to the immense relief of the fashion designer. A small, fear-inspiring smile crept onto his lips, as he remembered the plans that had concocted after the kwamis had attempted to sabotage him on Nooroo’s birthday the previous month. While he hadn’t been able to decipher much of the miraculous spellbook, he had learned enough to control Nooroo, and other kwamis as well, albeit not enough to get them to answer his demands.

 

Safely hidden at Gabriel’s desk was a small birdcage he had purchased. After performing the necessary enchantment, the cage would be immune to the kwami’s ability to phase through solid matter, something Gabriel had done immediately after purchasing it. He quietly began to approach the kwami, cage in hand, who was still deep in thought.

 

At the last second, Plagg sensed the incoming danger, snapping around just in time to see Gabriel, but he was too late to evade him. Gabriel scooped Plagg up with the cage and promptly snapped it shut, sealing Plagg away from escape.

 

“What, exactly, do you think you’re doing?” Gabriel inquired coldly, addressing the kwami who was now futilely ramming the bars, trying to escape.

 

“Cataclysm!” Plagg yelled, but the spell suppressed that as well.

 

“Where is Chat Noir?” Gabriel demanded, eyes widening as he realized that Chat Noir had indeed been absent for the entire akuma battle with Adrien. Could he have been planning a surprise attack?

 

“Wait.” Plagg’s eyes widened as well, “You’re looking for…”

 

While Plagg hadn’t liked Gabriel beforehand, he had never suspected that there was anything beyond the normal shitty parenting he’d seen over the years. But the reality of the situation was hitting him square in the face; the only person in Paris besides Master Fu who would recognize a kwami and know how to imprison one was...

 

“Is he nearby?” Gabriel pressed, “He hasn’t discovered me, has he?”

 

“ _ Hawkmoth _ .” Plagg snarled, his eyes glowing a violent green, “You monster!”

 

“I don’t have time for petty insults!” Gabriel’s voice raised, “You will tell me what you’re doing here, or I will-”

The familiar whir of a yoyo interrupted them, quickly accompanied by a knocking at the front door. Gabriel’s posture stiffened, and he quickly stuffed the kwami cage behind his desk, before approaching the sound, when both he and Plagg jumped at the loud  _ bang! _ of the door being kicked down. 

 

“ _ Silence! _ ” Gabriel whispered to Plagg, forcing the kwami’s mouth to shut immediately, before he could say anything.

 

Standing before them was the Miraculous Ladybug, in all her glory, fury emanating from her usually soft blue eyes, yoyo still in hand. She was still assuming a fighting posture as she took stock of the office, her gaze landing on the destroyed mannequin from Gabriel’s previous episode, before shifting right back towards the now startled Gabriel Agreste, who looked like he wanted to run and hide. 

 

Despite the terrifying information Plagg was now aware of, knowing that the scumbag afraid for once in his life was more than a little bit satisfying.

 

“How. Dare. You.” Ladybug seethed, injecting immeasurable levels of contempt into each syllable.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nino enters the story.

“This isn’t what it looks li-” Gabriel began to appease, but was interrupted by a lightning-fast blow to his jaw by the spotted heroine’s right arm, knocking him on his rear, and ending whatever pathetic excuse he was about to offer.

 

“Ladybug!” She heard Adrien from the doorway where she left him, “What are you doing!?” There was panic in the boy’s voice as he looked between his hero and the now bloody face of the only family he had left.

 

“I don’t know how,” Ladybug ignored Adrien, not really hearing him, her attention reserved for the source of the problem, “but I managed to convince myself that not being Hawkmoth-” Plagg winced,  “-was enough to make you a passable father.”

 

“Please!” Adrien exclaimed in desperation, finally grabbing her attention.

 

The rage of the superhero seemed to pause for a moment, as she finally looked back at Adrien, fully realizing exactly what she was doing. She didn’t regret what she had done, per say, not after what Adrien had told her, but she definitely didn’t like seeing that kind of fear on the face of the boy she loved. But after a brief moment of indecision, her scowl snapped right back in place.

 

“You’re coming with me, Adrien.” Ladybug declared, gritting her teeth, “You can spend the night with Nino or one of your other friends.”

 

“Wait!” The voice of Gabriel begged, “Please, don’t take my son away!”

 

“You told him that you wished you’d lost him.” Ladybug growled back at him, recalling what Adrien had relayed to her, “Wish granted.” She didn’t care how many headlines this made, she was not leaving Adrien alone in this house, at least not tonight. She didn’t know if she wanted to get authorities involved before letting Adrien return, but right now, Gabriel needed to see just how dead serious she was.

Despite the protests from both of the Agrestes, Ladybug grabbed Adrien, and left the mansion, swinging through the crisp autumn air until they were on a rooftop several streets away.

 

“What the heck, Ladybug?” He cried out, tears in his eyes. “I didn’t tell you everything he did, just so you could hit him!”

 

“I know I shouldn’t have hit him,” She desperately tried to reason, “but you can’t stay there, not with tensions this high-”

 

“We would’ve worked it out!” Adrien practically screamed, “I’d have just apologized for missing the shoots, and then-”

 

“NO!” Ladybug snarled, her apologetic attitude giving way for a tear-filled rage, “You didn’t do anything worth apologizing for, and that’s the problem!” She took Adrien’s stunned silence as an excuse to continue, “If you stand down, and say you were wrong, y-you’re giving him free reign to keep on using you, a-and he might hurt you again…” Despite the costume and powers, Marinette was beginning to surface. And regardless of whether or not she was right or wrong, Marinette didn’t like arguing with Adrien  _ at all _ .

 

A sad look overtook Adrien’s face. He looked away from her, and down at the neverending cityscape of the French capital, still busy this late at night. His bright blond hair, which had earned him the title of ‘Mr. Sunshine’ in the past, was a gigantic mess, but not in the roguish, Chat Noir style. His expression made it clear that that he wanted to deny Ladybug’s claims, but couldn’t. Probably because they had a lot more truth than he wanted to admit. While he wasn’t currently crying, even the untrained eye could see that he was having a truly rotten night.

 

“He wouldn’t have hit me.” Adrien said tiredly, “He would’ve just given me another lecture.”

 

“Most lectures don’t involved breaking things.” She countered, “And they don’t bring up dead mothers, either-” She stopped when Adrien flinched, and she realized just how insensitive that was, considering that Mrs. Agreste had never been declared dead.

 

“Wait, no, I mean-” She desperately tried to correct herself, but Adrien interrupted.

 

“No, you’re right.” He sighed, still not making eye contact, “It’s been two years, and we’ve heard nothing from her. Father probably knows something, but he doesn’t think I can handle it.” The tears welled up in his eyes yet again, “And considering he doesn’t seem to be looking for her, he either knows she’s dead, or knows that she left of her own accord.”

 

Rather than respond, Ladybug’s instinct was to hug him, and she did just that.

 

Adrien gave into his tears, and Ladybug joined in shortly afterwards. The two of them basked in each other’s warmth, not exchanging any words as the Moon’s pale light gave everything a harsher tint. Adrien didn’t know what he was going to do, but he did know one thing for sure: he loved this girl, and wasn’t going to let her go.

 

Ladybug had no clue how she could help Adrien in the long run, but she did know that right now, he needed her, and she loved him. And that would be enough for right now.

 

**********

 

Nino had never liked Gabriel Agreste. After meeting and befriending Adrien, the older Agreste had served as an invisible barrier between them, preventing them from hanging out more often than not, and consistently overscheduling the overperforming supermodel. And when Nino finally had the  _ pleasure  _ of meeting the man face-to-face, on Adrien’s birthday, he somehow managed to be far worse than the mental image the dark-skinned DJ had mentally constructed.

 

Their meeting had been bad enough that Nino had been akumatized into the Bubbler shortly afterwards, a supervillain hellbent on giving Adrien a birthday party. While Nino knew that he was at least partially responsible for the tension between himself and Mr. Agreste, he was equally certain that Mr. Agreste bore the far greater share of the blame.

 

So when Nino got a call from Alya at two in the morning, telling him that a new akuma was loose (because of course she was out there filming it), and that she was certain it was Adrien, Nino knew immediately who to blame for it.

 

“That bastard!” Nino rarely swore, but this situation definitely seemed to earn it.

 

“Sorry?” Alya sounded miffed, “You’re mad at Adrien?”

 

“His stupid father, more like.” He growled back, “Give me ten, and I’ll be right out there. Where is he?”

 

He arrived on the scene just in time to see Ladybug restoring the city block, and swinging away on her yoyo with Adrien in tow. Alya quickly flagged him down, and Nino only waited for a quick hello kiss before cutting loose.

 

“What the hell happened?” He demanded, and Alya shook her head in dismay.

 

“He called himself ‘Model Son,’ and was modelling the Agreste fall line on a stage he hypnotized dozens of civilians into building.” Alya sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose, “Mari’s gonna be devastated.”

 

While he had never been disappointed in his girlfriend, it was just yesterday that Nino came to fully appreciate just how  _ epic _ she really was. Somehow she was an ‘A’ student, maintained the most popular blog in Paris, and was a part-time superhero on top of all of that too. A superhero that had apparently known he was Carapace the entire time. As hard as he tried to feel surprised by that revelation, he knew deep down that he’d have probably been more surprised if she hadn’t noticed the similarities.

 

“Do you think there’s anything we can do right now?” Nino asked grimly, unfortunately knowing the answer.

 

“Nothing.” Alya shook her head, “Maybe try to call and text Adrien, give him the support he needs, but other than that, no.”

 

_ Figures _ . Nino thought sourly. At the end of the day, he was powerless to stand up to Mr. Agreste, just like the day he’d been akumatized. He would  _ definitely _ be calling Adrien, and doing everything in his power to comfort the teen model after the night’s events, but Nino knew that nothing was going to change.

 

“Can I see the footage?” He  _ really _ didn’t want to, but he felt obligated. He’d done the same thing after the Bubbler.

 

It was worse than he could’ve imagined, but Nino felt just a hint of satisfaction when he realized that by making a fool of himself in public, Adrien was inadvertently showing off just how bad his relationship with his father was. The press would definitely follow up on this, maybe even forcing Gabriel to give Adrien a little bit more freedom. He was grasping at straws and he knew it, but it was something.

 

Both the DJ and his blogging partner winced when the conversation turned to Adrien’s mother. The details of that case were something that only Nino and Chloe had been privy to; not even Marinette had learned while ‘investigating’ Adrien. All that was really known publicly was that Mrs. Agreste wasn’t present. Adrien had told them that she just vanished without a trace, and he was suspicious that his father knew something.

 

“Is she dead?” Alya asked him, flipping off the recording after Ladybug’s apparent victory, “I know it’s on the down low, but…”

 

“We don’t know.” Nino shook his head grimly, “Adrien figures that it’s either that or she left willingly, since there’s been no evidence of any crime, and no ransom demands or anything like that.”

 

The couple parted shortly after that, Nino wandering the streets by himself for a short while, reflecting on… a lot of things.

 

Nino had never thought that a famous model, a child of one of the wealthiest families in Paris, would be his best friend. A previously homeschooled model, who had spent his first few months in school as a genderbent Rapunzel, interested in everything, and understanding very little. Nino was a social guy. The kind of person who, knew everybody’s name, but wouldn’t really call any of them his friend, not really.

 

At least before he met Adrien.

 

The guy who was the most trusting, hard-working, unbelievable paragon of a teenage boy he’d ever met, and yet somehow, his father always seemed to find a way to be disappointed in him. Just thinking about that stern-faced, unloving piece of dirt was enough to make his blood boil. And there was nothing he could do about it!

 

“ _ Shit _ !” Nino swore, kicking a piece of trash into an alleyway, which was quickly accompanied by an angry yelp from a cat.

 

When Nino finally reached his apartment, his parents were fortunately still asleep, and clearly unaware that he’d embarked on a late night adventure. Nino shuddered at the thought of his mother’s expression if she ever found out. He entered his room, and was about to change into his bedclothes, when he was rudely interrupted.

 

“ _ Nino! _ ” A feminine voice whisper-yelled.

 

“Gah!” Nino jumped, tripping over himself as he turned to face the savior of Paris herself: Ladybug.

 

“I’m so sorry!” She yelped, bending down to help him up.

 

There were numerous questions Nino was about to ask, namely why an attractive girl in a skintight suit was hiding in his room in the middle of the night (what would Alya think?), but didn’t voice any of them when he noticed who was standing behind her, with an expression befitting of somebody who’d just watched their kitten get run over.

 

“Hey, Nino.” Adrien said, barely looking at him, “Looks like we finally might get to have that sleepover you’ve been wanting.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think that this one's a bit shorter, so sorry about that, but I should have the next one up in another day or two.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nino and Adrien hang out, bro-to-bro, and Tikki does a little bit of sleuthing.

Nino’s parents were easy to deal with. Just a few words from Ladybug about the situation, and they pretty much agreed to harbor him for as long as they needed to. Adrien had figured they would. After all, they weren’t overly thrilled after the Bubbler affair, and made no secret who they held responsible, and it wasn’t Adrien or Nino. They had eagerly provided Adrien with the sleeping bag Nino usually slept in during family vacations, and a space on the floor next to his best friend’s bed.

 

“We’ll figure something out.” Ladybug had had said simply, promising to return in the morning. While her mask hid most of the emotion, Adrien’s time around her as Chat Noir gave him enough experience with the girl to tell that she was still on the verge of crying again. The fact that dealing with his problems had caused that for her… made him want to break something.

 

“Thank you.” Adrien had told her, “For everything.”

 

And with that, she had simply nodded before setting out, leaving the two boys sitting together in silence. Were the situation less tense, Adrien probably would’ve laughed at the sight of Nino without his trademark red hat, a sight he’d only been privy to a handful of times, and would likely never get used to.

 

“Thanks for having me, Nino.” Adrien said graciously, “I know it’s really late, and-”

 

“Don’t mention it dude.” The DJ said immediately, “Finding you a place to stay matters a lot more than my family losing a little bit of sleep.” After a pause, he added, “Plus, I’ve already told you: they don’t like your dad anymore than I do.”

 

“Right.” His response was quiet, and Nino cursed himself for addressing the elephant in the room.

 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Nino tried, hopeful that Adrien might confide in him.

 

The boy in question wanted no such thing. Much like with Ladybug, however, he felt like he needed to, otherwise he was going to just bottle it up. Between Nino and Ladybug, he realized that he had the two people in the world he trusted most, and he felt warm inside knowing that his trust wasn’t misplaced.

 

“I was a bit worried about him today, after all the akumas…” Adrien began.

 

The story progressed in mostly truthful fashion, Adrien only omitting Plagg’s role. The boy almost had a heart attack as he realized that he hadn’t seen the little black kwami since his akumatization, but he figured that was a problem for tomorrow. Plagg had called himself ‘immortal’ on more than one occasion, so Adrien had to surmise that he was probably alright.

 

However, Nino’s face became more and more clouded as Adrien recapped the night’s events. When Adrien mentioned the comment his father made about his mother, Nino audibly gasped, and there was a distinct fury in his eyes, but he let Adrien continue. The boy didn’t say anything until Adrien reached the point where Ladybug punched his father.

 

“Good!” Nino cut in, “I was probably going to do that myself.”

 

“Come on,” Adrien argued, “it wasn’t that bad-”

 

“He basically said he wished you were dead, dude!” Nino raised his voice, “Something has to be done about this!”

 

Adrien didn’t want to think like that. Nino was right, his father’s words had hurt a lot. But what Nino was suggesting, that violence against his father was somehow the solution to all of this… definitely wasn’t what he wanted to hear, either. More than anything, he just wanted his family back. Including his mother, but that obviously wasn’t going to happen. 

 

He fiddled with his ring, quietly considering. He still loved his father, no question about it. The man had been cold in the past, a ‘total asshole’ as Nino would call him, but the way he’d been tonight… was new. 

 

“He was drunk, Nino.” Adrien whispered, “I don’t think he meant it.”

 

“Doesn’t matter.” Nino said firmly, “He still shouldn’t have said it.”

 

He couldn’t think of a response to that one, and the words sat awkwardly between them for what felt like an eternity. Eventually, it became more than Nino could bear, and he decided that the mood needed to be lightened. After all, this was Adrien’s first sleepover.

 

“But you know what  _ does _ matter?” Nino asked, and a smile formed on his face.

 

“What?” Adrien asked seriously, not catching the humor in his friend’s voice.

 

“Do you really think I’m going to just ignore the fact that your akuma design was like, a million times cooler than mine?” Nino shook his head, and was pleased to see the beginnings of a smile forming on Adrien’s face as well, “I mean, seriously? You were able to look like, _however_ _you wanted_ , and I was stuck looking like a villain from that 60’s Batman show.”

 

“Oh please.” Adrien snorted, “They had  _ some _ standards.”

 

“Dude!” Nino was indignant, but it didn’t take long until both of them were laughing for far longer than that joke deserved. 

 

There was a lot that went unsaid between the two best friends that night. Gabriel’s shadow towered over them, and the situation with Ladybug in the morning wasn’t going to be pleasant, they both knew it. 

 

In that moment, however, it didn’t matter. As the two of them bantered back and forth, again and again, it didn’t take long for Nino to bust out the video games, even though it was obscenely late. Because in that moment, Adrien wasn’t wondering where he’d be sleeping the next night, or whether he could even speak to his own father again. He was just a guy, hanging out at his best friend’s house.

 

And that was more than enough.

 

**********

 

It was nearly five in the morning when Marinette finally entered her bedroom. She detransformed as she slid through the trapdoor, flopping down onto the bed in total exhaustion, not sure if she had never been more tired in her life. Hawkmoth had struck in the middle of the night before, but to think he would act so quickly after his failure on the previous day was kind of ridiculous. Ruthless, and probably smart, since Ladybug was worn out, but a level of cruel she hadn’t anticipated.

 

“When are you going back to Nino’s house?” Tikki demanded, the usual happiness of her voice dampened by a deep concern.

 

“Morning…” Marinette groaned, “Just let me sleep…”

 

“Are you taking Adrien back to his house?” Tikki pressed, and Marinette ignored her, having already gone under.

 

“Figures.” Tikki mumbled.

 

The crimson kwami was more than a little bit concerned. Every single superhero on their team, besides Ladybug, had been akumatized within the last few days. Tikki still wasn’t familiar with the effects that had on a kwami, as she hadn’t spoken to Pollen beyond the pleasant formalities on Nooroo’s birthday, but she couldn’t imagine that they were good. Fortunately, Adrien had been akumatized while he was a civilian, and it hadn’t been his miraculous that was tainted, meaning that Plagg was probably alright.

 

Tikki wasn’t sure though, and that concern for her other half led her to break the rules that she usually championed, by sneaking out, and flying towards the Agreste Mansion, determined to check on Plagg and make it back home before Marinette awakened. If Plagg wasn’t there, she would check Nino’s house, since Ladybug had taken Adrien there, and Plagg might’ve simply followed his chosen.

 

“ _ Plagg! _ ” Tikki whisper-yelled into Adrien’s vacant bedroom, but to no avail.

 

A quick sweep of the house wouldn’t hurt, she figured, and she soon found herself darting around the cold corridors of the largest house she’d seen in several decades. In some areas, she noticed warm, lively photos of a happy family that included a beautiful blonde woman, clearly the missing or possibly dead Emilie Agreste. Others, more recent, featured a cold Mr. Agreste, and a depressed Adrien.

 

The last place she checked was Mr. Agreste’s office, since she could hear voices in there. She made sure to stay low to the ground, and hide behind one of the unbroken mannequins, and she observed two figures she recognized to be Mr. Agreste and his cold-faced assistant, Nathalie. Mr. Agreste had a frantic look on his face, and Nathalie appeared to have just woke up, but she too shared his look of concern.

 

“They’ll be here soon, I’m almost certain!” Mr. Agreste hissed, “She’s had more than enough time to recruit help now, that must be what’s keeping her!”

 

“I’m certain they would’ve struck by now, if they were coming.” Nathalie soothed, calmly rubbing ice on Gabriel’s swollen face, “After all, she already stopped by once tonight, and clearly didn’t suspect a thing.”

 

“One can never be too certain.” Gabriel muttered, and Tikki frowned in suspicion.

 

She could only assume that the ‘she’ Nathalie mentioned was Ladybug, so why would Mr. Agreste be worried about her coming back. Granted, he might just be afraid that she’d hit him again, but the way he was acting… it seemed much more like he was hiding something, than a basic fear of being attacked. 

 

And also, why would Ladybug recruit help to go after Mr. Agreste? Something wasn’t right here, but Tikki knew that looking into it right now would be far too dangerous, so she simply stayed put as the conversation continued.

 

“There’s also the  _ small matter _ that my own son has been taken from me.” Gabriel growled, his face contorting violently, “Who does she think she is?”

 

“In all honesty, sir.” Nathalie cut in, a somewhat annoyed edge to her voice as she tended to her boss’s face, “It does sound like you deserved it.”

 

Gabriel offered no response to that, and his face fell. As the conversation was over, Tikki took the opportunity to slip away, back through the door she’d entered from. Something wasn’t right, she was sure of it, but it was important that she rushed back to Marinette now. She needed to know about what Tikki had seen before she went back to Adrien. Plagg could wait until tomorrow. After all, he’d been taking care of himself for centuries on end, and was almost certainly still by Adrien’s side...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another short chapter, so sorry about that. I've got a few more chapters planned, so don't trust the 5/6 on the top.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Villains do villain things.

After Tikki left, the conversation between designer and assistant continued. Nathalie wasn’t thrilled to have been disturbed at this hour, but upon learning about the events which transpired in her absence… perhaps she should never sleep.

 

Akumatizing Adrien was a line that Nathalie hadn’t thought Gabriel would ever cross. After all, the last time Adrien had been directly affected by an akuma, Gabriel had quite literally quit for a brief time. And just yesterday, Gabriel had specifically demanded that Adrien be protected during his mass akuma attack.

 

Yet here they were. Slightly intoxicated, and bitter about his failures, Gabriel had taken advantage of his own son’s emotional state. The man easily justified it by saying that it was “for Adrien,” since he was trying to bring back the boy’s mother, but that didn’t make it much better.

 

Nathalie was a little bit disgusted with herself as she realized that this turn of events didn’t change her feelings for him. 

 

“ _ Shit _ .” Gabriel hissed in annoyance, and Nathalie saw that he was looking through the small amounts of the Miraculous spellbook that he had translated. He was looking to see if there was any way he could compel Chat Noir’s kwami to tell them what he knew, or perhaps even reveal the hero’s identity.

 

“Nothing?” Nathalie asked, knowing the answer, but Gabriel’s grave expression meant that things were worse than that.

 

“It so happens,” Gabriel began, pulling her aside and into the mansion’s foyer so the kwami couldn’t hear their conversation. “...that apparently the kwami can be summoned back to their respective miraculous at any time. Chat Noir will simply have to cast some kind of enchantment on his ring, and the kwami will be immediately summoned to his ring.” Gabriel shook his head grimly before continuing, “He must have gone to the guardian of the miraculous, who will surely know how…”

 

“...Meaning that it’s only a matter of time before your identity is revealed.” Nathalie finished, realizing just how much trouble they might be in.

 

The possibility of being caught had always been on Nathalie’s mind. She had conducted extensive research into the exact nature of Gabriel’s crimes, and just how much responsibility she might bear as accessory to those crimes. And, after yesterday’s adventure, she was now a fellow perpetrator. She knew that her and Gabriel could both end up facing over a decade in prison, probably more if Gabriel was found responsible for the murders of people killed by akumas, even though they’d been brought back. 

 

“I fear that it’s already been revealed.” Gabriel sighed, removing his glasses and pinching his nose, “Chat Noir and Ladybug must have learned my identity yesterday, after I was forced to detransform in public. I thought I’d gotten away, but apparently not.”

 

Her decision to take of the Peacock and the mantle of Mayura was not born out of strong self-preservation instincts. Even now, she could feel her esophagus being restricted, and a growing sickness in her stomach.

 

But it wasn’t a decision she regretted. The alternative would’ve been allowing Gabriel to be captured, consequently leading to her own imprisonment in the near future. Moreover, it would’ve eliminated  _ any _ chance she had of ever seeing Emilie again. Even now, as her feelings for the woman’s husband grew even stronger, Nathalie wanted to bring her back. Whether her and Gabriel became something or not.

 

“We still have a chance.” Nathalie supplied after a long silence, an idea striking her.

 

“Chat Noir will likely reclaim his kwami soon, and your identity, but Ladybug clearly doesn’t know anything yet.” Nathalie continued, taking her boss’s silence as permission to keep explaining.

 

“But she will soon.” The designer sat down on one of the chairs in the foyer. Nathalie hadn’t seen him so down in the dumps since the day he’d temporarily given up.

 

“But perhaps not soon enough?” Nathalie suggested, and Gabriel frowned in confusion, “You  _ know _ that she’s returning in a couple hours, perhaps sooner, with or without Adrien.”   
  


“A trap.” Gabriel’s eyes lit up, and the full meaning of Nathalie’s words hit him, “And if Chat Noir isn’t available yet, she’ll have walked right into our territory… alone.”

 

“Precisely.” Nathalie nodded, “And together, we’ll have the power of  _ two  _ miraculous, and any akuma that you can scrape up.”

 

“ _ One _ miraculous.” Gabriel’s eyes narrowed, “I’ve made my position on the Peacock quite clear. I will  _ not _ have you sharing Emilie’s fate.”

 

And there it was. Nathalie could feel her heart picking up a bit at Gabriel’s protective nature, even though he was still set on Emilie. A stubbornness that she couldn’t help but find attractive. It meant that he would take some convincing, but he would almost certainly allow her to stand at his side, if she approached it correctly.

 

“Gabriel.” She said firmly, “I proved to you yesterday that I would do  _ whatever _ it takes to save your family. I’ve already begun to experience symptoms like Emilie did, so let me help you save both her  _ and _ myself.”

 

He didn’t like it, and she felt some momentary guilt for the way she’d framed the argument, but it didn’t matter. If he let her help, they could finish this by noon today. With Ladybug out of the picture, it didn’t matter what Chat Noir did or didn’t know. He couldn’t fight the akuma on his own, and it was only a matter of time before the captive Ladybug revealed his identity, or the location of the other miraculous.

 

Granted, kidnapping was a line she didn’t want to cross, but she had a solution in mind to ensure that no permanent harm was done to anybody. They could cross that bridge when they got there.

 

“ _ Fine _ .” Gabriel said grimly, clearly not happy about it, “I will allow you to wield the Peacock.  _ Only _ in the case of an emergency, however, will you transform. Myself and my akuma will be more than capable of handling Ladybug alone, but having you in reserve will be… useful.”

 

“And as for the akuma…” Gabriel considered, and an almost maniacal smile appeared on his face, “I know  _ just _ the right person.”

 

**********

 

Lila Rossi had a bad day. It had started out with such  _ promise _ , too, since Hawkmoth had  _ finally _ reached out to her to crush Ladybug. 

 

But  _ no _ . Lila was still awake, at nearly five in the morning, watching the footage of Ladybug and Chat Noir  _ somehow _ taking out literally  _ dozens _ of akuma. Never mind the fact that they had lost their teammates (including that poor excuse for a fox superhero), never mind the fact that they were impossibly outmatched, those two buffoons still managed to win. As she watched every blow, every failure, she began to question whether or not Hawkmoth’s victory would ever happen, something she’d been confident in since the day she was first akumatized.

 

Her hatred for Ladybug was all that was keeping her going, at the moment. What kind of person would pick that girl to be a superhero? Somebody who would scream at a civilian in public, out of jealousy? Ladybug clearly had a thing for Adrien, and had no qualms about using her superpowers to get close to him. 

 

_ Two can play at that game _ . Lila thought to herself. And she had already proved that. She had seen the footage of that battle as well, and how Volpina had gone straight to the Agreste mansion. She smirked to herself imagining just how far she had gotten with Adrien before Ladybug stepped in…

 

Lila’s room, not nearly as luxurious as she claimed, was even more of a mess than it usually was, as Lila had thrown quite the tantrum after returning home. Her laptop screen was cracked from when she’d thrown it earlier, and the Italian girl found herself swearing in a variety of languages, as she considered how she might persuade her mother to buy another one.

 

The last thing she had been expecting was another black butterfly entering her room, so quickly after the last time. Her previous gusto in accepting it, however, wasn’t there, and she found herself glaring at it as it entered her bracelet for the third time in the last twenty-four hours.

 

“ _ Volpina _ .” His voice boomed for her ears alone.

 

“Hawkmoth.” She spat back, “Back so soon?”

 

“Oh yes.” His voice laughed, “And this time, I promise you that victory is within our grasp. I’m offering you the power of illusion yet again, so that you may stand by my side as we finally lure Ladybug into a trap she won’t soon forget!”

 

“ _ Okay _ .” Lila agreed, a malicious sneer practically dripping from her voice, “Let’s make it count then.”

 

And with that, the Italian girl stood, eagerly allowing Hawkmoth’s power to sweep over her again, and she was swiftly transformed back into Volpina. This time  _ would _ be different, she just knew it. With Hawkmoth directly interceding on her behalf, Ladybug was going to wish she’d  _ never _ interfered.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette acts without thinking, and a father / son reunite.

Marinette was deep in thought. She was stuck in the inbetween state of having technically exited the world of sleep, but still lacking any desire to move at all. A quick glance to her right confirmed that Tikki was asleep on the pillow next to her, meaning that the girl could still consider her options.

 

The events last night were alarming, to say the least.

 

“ _ Not enough for you. _ ” Model Son, Adrien, had said in reference to himself.

 

While she hadn’t had time to think about it yet, what with her anger regarding Gabriel, Marinette was still bothered by that line. It strongly implied that Adrien valued Ladybug’s opinion a lot, but why would it? Sure, she was a superhero, and many people looked up to her, but Adrien’s message felt a lot more… personal. Almost as if he was talking about not being enough in the romantic sense.

 

That opened a whole new can of worms, and Marinette gasped. Did Adrien have a crush on Ladybug!? If so, she had no idea how she felt about that. On the one hand, the idea that Adrien could love her made her want to squeal with joy, but on the other hand… there was nothing she could do about it. Dating a civilian boy as Ladybug would be ridiculously irresponsible, and could endanger him to a whole new level. Ladybug shuddered to consider what Hawkmoth might do, what _ she _ might do, if an akuma threatened Adrien’s safety to get to her.

 

“Damn it…” Marinette mumbled in annoyance, irrationally jealous of her own alter ego. If he could just like her civilian side, they’d be in the clear, but  _ no _ . He had to like  _ Ladybug _ , giving her a temptation she wasn’t sure she could resist. 

 

Remembering her promise to return to the Lahiffe apartment in the morning, she frantically looked at her clock, and upon seeing that it was nearly ten in the morning, furiously scrambled out of her bed, and down her ladder. Fortunately there was no school today, but Ladybug had to turn up sooner or later. She needed to talk to Adrien as soon as possible.

 

“Marinette...” Tikki’s tired voice called out to her, but the words were lost on the raven-haired girl, as she rushed into her bathroom to shower. The kwami decided to wait until after the shower to press the issue.

 

“Marinette, wait!” Tikki called out as the girl emerged from the bathroom, and was preparing to transform.

 

“Later, Tikki!” Marinette cut her off, “Spots On!”

  
  


Minutes later, Ladybug arrived at the Lahiffe apartment, at Nino’s window, and was relieved to see that they were both still asleep. Nino was on his bed, and Adrien was using an old-looking orange sleeping bag. She quickly opened the window without thinking, climbing straight into the room, and reaching for Adrien.

 

The sight before her, however, was something she hadn’t anticipated, and her cheeks turned even redder than her suit when she saw that Adrien had opted to sleep shirtless that night, for whatever reason (not that she was complaining). He was well-toned, as she knew from a rare swimsuit ad featuring the model, but to see it in person… Ladybug didn’t even realize she was drooling until Adrien’s eyes opened, and then promptly widened as he registered the sight before him.

 

“Gah!” Ladybug jumped, backing up and turning around, desperately trying to remove herself from the situation, just in time to face Nino, who had also begun to stir (and also lacked a garment to cover his upper body). His eyes widened as well, and Marinette became fully aware of the fact that she was standing in the middle of a bedroom with two shirtless boys. Her suit clearly wasn’t the only thing magical about her, since her cheeks found a way to turn even redder. Marinette was certain that she was about to die from embarrassment, and found herself jumping back outside the window.

 

Rather than trying to relive that embarrassment, Ladybug found herself maneuvering around, and entering the building through a window at the end of the floor’s hallway. She resolved to only use the main entrance from here on out, as she knocked on the front door.

 

After being let in by Nino’s father, who she knew from her time as Marinette worked from home, she quickly sought out Adrien, after giving him and Nino a minute to prepare themselves this time. The two of them sat down at the kitchen table, the Lahiffes generously giving them some space. They shared a look, full of embarrassment and shame, and they silently agreed to never speak of what happened in Nino’s bedroom ever again.

 

“So, um…” Adrien began awkwardly, “Can I go back to my Dad now?”

 

Ladybug swore to herself, maintaining a neutral expression to conceal it. She wasn’t sure she could let the boy go back in good conscience, but she was certain that she had no right to stop him either. She wasn’t a cop, or a social worker. She was just a girl his age with magical powers. And while she didn’t want to send Adrien back there… the choice was more his than hers.

 

“Is that what you want?” Ladybug whispered quietly, not making eye contact.

 

“Yeah.” Adrien said, equally as quiet, “I think he’s sorry for what he did, and I’m sure he-” Adrien choked up a little bit before continuing, “-I’m sure he didn’t mean it.”

 

“I shouldn’t have hit him.” Ladybug said abruptly, “I know I said that last night, but I think I need to repeat it.”

 

“Nino said basically the same thing.” Adrien remarked, the apathetic tone of voice he was putting on clearly a facade, “It sounds like pretty much everybody but me wants to take a swing at him…” The boy broke up a bit at that, and finally looked her in the eye.

 

Marinette’s heart broke again, as she saw the turmoil in his eyes. It was clear that he held no grudge, something that was both a strength and a weakness for him. A strength because it let him rebuild relationships with those around him, and a weakness because it meant that his father could easily do this again. She shuddered to realize that if he hadn’t been akumatized, there was a real chance she wouldn’t have found out.

 

“Let me come with you.” Ladybug mustered her courage to say, “I’ll take you back, and I’ll talk with your father.”

 

“Do you think that’s a good idea?” Adrien frowned, “I’m sure I can handle-”

 

“No, I’d better do it.” Ladybug cut in, before he could finish, “I’m apprehensive taking you back as it is, I  _ have  _ to at least do this.”

 

While Adrien looked like he wanted to protest some more, he ended up just nodding. After a quick goodbye to Nino’s family, and a bro hug between the best friends, Adrien and Ladybug departed, swinging through the cool Saturday air in the direction of Agreste mansion, eliciting stares from people on the streets, and a couple of cell phones filming, but Ladybug was beyond caring about such things.

 

Far more pressing, in her mind, was the close physical contact she was having with Adrien while she carried him. The events of last night had transpired in the heat of battle, or when Ladybug was consumed by her concern and anger on Adrien’s battle, leaving her little time to contemplate the situation.

 

Managing the whole journey with only a faint blush, Ladybug stopped at the doors of the Agreste mansion. Both teenagers stared at the massive building, a mixture of fear and awe consuming them. Despite literally  _ living  _ there, Adrien looked like he was seeing the building for the first time ever.

 

“One more thing.” Ladybug grabbed him as he was about to knock, “Last night, when you were akumatized, you said something…” His face was blank, so she continued, “You said that you  _ weren’t enough _ for me? I know you don’t remember what happened, but do you know…”

 

Immediately, Adrien’s face turned bright red with embarrassment. He looked away, his face practically swallowed by panic and shame. Adrien wasn’t able to remember exactly what he said, obviously, but his reaction made it very clear to the heroine that he could at least make an educated guess what that was about.

 

“Um…” Adrien began, “Yeah, about that…”   
  


“You don’t have to say anything!” Ladybug cut in, much louder than strictly necessary, her own face consumed by a scarlet wave, as she realized that her theory from earlier about Adrien having a crush on Ladybug was probably just confirmed, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked, it’s none of my business-”

 

Anymore conversation between them was interrupted when the front doors opened, revealing the cold, emotionless face of Nathalie Sancoeur. Not far behind her was the tall, well-groomed man that employed her.

 

Gabriel’s face conveyed a message of determination, and there was a fire in his eyes that Ladybug had anticipated. His nose was bandaged from where it was struck on the previous night, and he was wearing a brand new pair of glasses, his old ones presumably damaged from Ladybug’s attack. Despite the presence of his son, the designer had eyes for Ladybug alone, and the spotted heroine returned his gaze with equal intensity.

 

“Father!” Adrien exclaimed, surprising both Ladybug and Gabriel by rushing forwards and embracing the man.

 

“Adrien…” The man’s composure collapsed momentarily, “I’m so sorry, my son. I never meant to make you feel inadequate, or like I don’t care about you. You’re my son,  _ Emilie’s  _ son, and I love you more than anything.”

 

“It’s okay…” Adrien sobbed into his shoulders, “And I’m sorry too, for all the photoshoots I’ve missed, and everything else.”

 

“We can sort that out later.” Gabriel said firmly, gently separating himself from his son, “In fact, perhaps we should tone down your workload a little bit?” Adrien and Ladybug gaped at him, and even Nathalie arched an eyebrow.

 

“But in the meantime…” Gabriel’s gaze returned to Ladybug, “I get the feeling that your friend and I need to have a word.”


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien makes a getaway, and Ladybug ends up in the belly of the beast.

“Plagg!” Adrien called, rummaging through his room, his panic growing more and more with each passing moment. He’d decided that Plagg was probably safe somewhere last night, most likely back at home, but he wasn’t there! And even if something wasn’t wrong with him, what if Plagg had just left him?

 

That caused Adrien to stop dead in his tracks, a cold feeling sweeping over him. What if, in light of Adrien’s akumatization, Plagg had decided that Adrien wasn’t worthy of being Chat Noir, and had gone to Master Fu? While Adrien didn’t think Plagg would do something like that, Adrien couldn’t really blame him if he did. After all, getting akumatized meant that there was a real chance that Hawkmoth had learned his identity, and that was a risk they couldn’t afford to take, Adrien knew that…

 

Adrien resumed his search, even more frantic than before. He couldn’t have lost Plagg. He couldn’t lose being Chat Noir. He couldn’t lose his freedom! Even if father was actually serious about loosening up his schedule a bit, being a superhero was by far the highlight of his life, time when he didn’t have to walk around maintaining his family’s image. Time when he could say what he wanted, fight for a cause he believed in, and be alongside the girl that he loved more than anything. Adrien didn’t know what he’d do if he lost that.

 

The boy glanced at his window, nervously. He’d snuck out of his room without superpowers before, when he first went to school. It hadn’t been easy, but he’d managed it just fine. He may have never been to Master Fu’s residence personally, but the old man had given him a business card with an address on it when he visited last. He’d been warned to only go there in emergencies, but Adrien reasoned that missing Plagg and getting akumatized in a twenty-four hour period probably counted.

 

His father might want to come see him, and Nathalie might check in, but that was a risk Adrien would have to take. He couldn’t lose Plagg…

 

So, without further delay, Adrien climbed out of his window. And much to his shock, just as he began to lower himself, steel barriers clamped down, indicating that the mansion’s defence system had been activated! Adrien almost fell from the impact of the barriers crashing down, but luckily managed to maintain his grip. The young model wasn’t sure if his motion at the window had triggered it, or if it had been activated manually. Either way, Adrien had stopped caring. All he knew was that he needed to get to Fu as soon as possible.

 

**********

 

“So, Mr. Agreste…” Ladybug began awkwardly as they walked into his office. Fortunately, the shattered mannequin from the previous night had been cleaned up and replaced, leaving the office to look like nothing had happened at all.

 

“Ladybug.” Gabriel returned cooly, “I’m left to wonder what right you thought you had to interfere in my family’s affairs, but I-”

 

“Oh, save it!” Ladybug snapped, cutting him off, “Maybe what I did was morally ambiguous, but I’d do it again in a heartbeat.” Gabriel arched an eyebrow at her defiance, “And mark my words,  _ Gabriel _ ,” Ladybug spat, dropping the formality in favor of using his first name, “-If you  _ ever _ treat your son like that again,” She approached him, poking his chest as she stared up, straight into his eyes, “-I’ll make sure that a broken nose is the  _ least _ of your injuries.”

 

The two of them faced off, identical faces of rage. Ladybug’s was on behalf of Adrien, of course, and Gabriel Agreste was a man who didn’t take kindly to being ordered around within his own house. And much to Ladybug’s surprise, she detected no fear in his eyes at all, almost as if  _ he _ was the one restraining himself.

 

“Mr. Agreste?” Nathalie’s voice interrupted, “I apologize for the interruption, but you have a  _ very _ important call right now.”

 

“Put it through.” Gabriel acknowledged robotically, retreating back to the safety of his desk before addressing Ladybug again, “I believe  _ you’ve  _ made your point.” And with that, Nathalie placed a hand on Ladybug’s shoulder to escort her out.

 

Once back in the lobby, Ladybug regarded the assistant with an arched eyebrow. Something felt  _ off _ about this whole affair. Nathalie’s body language, usually as stiff as a board, seemed almost nervous. Ladybug would probably just attribute it to being in the presence of a hero, but Nathalie’s anxiety didn’t seem directed at her, but rather back in the office they had just left. And rather than simply escort Ladybug back outside, Nathalie stopped in the lobby, leaving the two of them to awkwardly look at each other.

 

“Is Adrien settled?” Ladybug decided to ask, testing the tall woman’s expression.

 

“Back in his room.” Nathalie answered automatically, “There will be no further issues between him and Mr. Agreste. Not like last night.”

 

“Well then,” Ladybug continued coldly, “I take it you wouldn’t mind if I left?”

 

Nathalie’s expression tightened at that, and she wouldn’t make eye contact. After a long, awkward silence between them, Ladybug was about to ask again, when she heard a loud crash coming from Mr. Agreste’s office. The heroine’s eyes went wide, and she pushed past a surprisingly unfazed Nathalie, kicking open the door to the office to witness a truly horrifying scene in front of her.

 

Gabriel Agreste was still in his office, but he was being physically restrained by an arm around his neck. Mr. Agreste was struggling, grabbing onto his attacker, desperately trying to slide out of the headlock, but to no avail. After all, a regular human wouldn’t be able to overcome the power of a miraculous wielder.

 

Ladybug’s blood went cold as she made eye contact with the man holding Mr. Agreste, and she found herself gaping. Because behind Mr. Agreste was a man she didn’t think she would see again for a long while, not after the stunt he’d pulled yesterday.

 

Standing there, his face mostly obscured by a black mask, an evil grin dominating his features, was none other than...

 

“Ladybug…” Hawkmoth’s voice called to her, excitement dripping from every syllable. He laughed maniacally when the girl couldn’t find her voice to respond, “What’s the matter, surprised to see me?”

 

“ _ Hawkmoth _ .” She managed, shaking away her shock, “What are  _ you _ doing here?”

 

“Just surveying the area.” He shrugged, his grin still present, “I must say, it’s a nice house that Gabe has here. I’d almost be tempted to make it my own...” He looked down at his hostage, “Especially since the owner might soon be…  _ deceased _ .”

  
  


“Let him go!” Ladybug snapped back, but her voice was shaking. After all, her and Chat Noir together had failed to defeat Hawkmoth just yesterday, and now she was facing him  _ alone _ . This was even disregarding the fact that her opponent had what was hopefully her future father-in-law as a hostage.

 

“The miraculous.” Hawkmoth laughed, and drew his rapier with his free hand, pressing it against the fashion designer's throat, “Or Gabriel Agreste  _ dies _ .”

 

She was torn. Ladybug knew she couldn’t let Mr. Agreste die, but she couldn’t just hand over her miraculous! There had to be another way. She quickly examined the room, with its various mannequins and photographs scattered about. But much to her dismay, she found nothing of use. Nothing that could conceivably turn the tables here. Especially considering that Hawkmoth might not be alone; an akuma probably wasn’t far.

 

A frown took over her face, however, when her eyes settled back on Mr. Agreste. He was still struggling, his facial expression conveying a mixture of indignation and fear, perfectly in character for him, but something didn’t seem right with him. She couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary with him, but her gut was telling her that something was wrong…

 

Ladybug gasped when she realized what was wrong. Moments later, it was Ladybug’s turn to smile, as she fully comprehended the meaning of her discovery.

 

“Go ahead.” She laughed, and Hawkmoth’s composure faltered for second, “I’m sure he can recover from whatever you hit him with.”

 

“Why,  _ you- _ ” Gabriel tried to speak, his eyes narrowing in rage at the heroine, but Ladybug waved him off.

 

“After all,” She continued, her eyes narrowing at Gabriel, and pointing straight at his nose, “His face seems to have recovered just fine from my blow yesterday.” Ladybug smiled, pleased by what she’d noticed. Mr. Agreste had even been wearing a bandage when she first entered the mansion, “You can tell Volpina to stop hiding.” She added, allowing herself to feel more than a little smug.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah... I guess I write short chapters, sorry about that. I should have another one up in a few days, sorry about the cliffhanger. Hope you enjoy the story, and I'm always glad to see your comments!


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien gets a moment with Master Fu, and Ladybug faces off against far more than she bargained for.

“Come in!” The voice of Master Fu called from inside the parlor, and Adrien made wasted no time opening the door and rushing in.

 

Having never been to Master Fu’s home before, Adrien found himself momentarily awed by the place, as small as it was. Despite holding some of the most powerful artifacts in existence, Master Fu lived more frugally than Adrien would’ve expected. Granted, Adrien’s room alone probably had more floor space than three of these apartments, but he figured that he wasn’t too far off on the size of the place.

 

“Adrien?” Fu gasped, and the two made awkward eye contact, “What is the matter? Has something happened?”

 

“Well, yes,” Adrien started, and decided to begin with his own akumatization, “did you see what happened last night?”

 

“Last night?” Fu frowned, as he moved to prepare some tea for both himself and Adrien, “After Hawkmoth’s mass attack, I wouldn’t have thought he would move again anytime soon.”

 

“Yeah…” Adrien said awkwardly, and Fu arched an inquisitive eyebrow, “See, last night,  _ I _ was the one who got akumatized.”

 

At that, Fu nearly dropped the teapot he was carrying, his jaw dropping for a quick second. This caused Adrien’s heart to race as he realized that he might be on the verge of giving back his miraculous if Fu wasn’t pleased by this. A long, awkward silence hung between them, as Fu clearly considered this turn of events. Wayzz, Fu’s kwami, audibly gasped, clearly horrified by the turn of events.

 

“Was it due to your father?” Fu asked quietly, and Adrien nodded.

 

“We have an even bigger problem now,” Adrien told him, “I haven’t seen Plagg since it happened. I’m guessing… you haven’t see him?”

 

“No.” Fu scowled, but not at Adrien, as he stared off into space, “But don’t worry about that, as long as you have your ring, the spell to summon Plagg back is quite simple. In all honesty, I should teach it to both you  _ and _ Ladybug as soon as possible.”

 

“Plagg was always a troublemaker, anyways.” Wayzz added with a sigh, “Chances are he took the opportunity to raid the nearest cheese shop. I wouldn’t worry.”

 

“You mean…” Adrien allowed himself some hope, “You won’t make me stop being Chat Noir?”

 

“No.” Fu shook his head, “If Hawkmoth knows your identity now, taking the Black Cat Miraculous out of your possession won’t make you any safer. He will still attack you for information.” The old man reasoned, “Information that is much  _ safer _ if you are still able to defend yourself.”

 

In that moment, Adrien was hit by the full weight of what had happened. He’d let himself get so worked up by his father’s actions, that he’d compromised the safety of not only himself but everybody around him. If his identity had been divulged, Hawkmoth would now have a way to track down the other miraculous, since Adrien knew where Fu resided. Shame overwhelmed the young model, and he quickly spoke up to voice it.

 

“I’m sorry!” Adrien said, much louder than necessary, “You trusted me to keep an eye on Plagg, and not let Hawkmoth control me, and I’ve failed!”

 

Embarrassed by his outburst, Adrien was surprised to see a smile appearing on the old Guardian’s face. Feeling almost offended, Adrien was about to ask him what was so funny, when Fu finally spoke.

 

“Heh.” Fu chuckled, “If anything, I should be the one apologizing. If you had just kept walking that day you helped me on the sidewalk, your family would not be in jeopardy right now. Given how I assigned both halves of absolute power to teenagers I knew next to nothing about… I’d say things have turned out pretty well.”

 

“Would you rather it went that way?” Adrien asked quietly, “That I just didn’t help you up, and somebody else got the black cat.”

 

“We only live once, Adrien.” The old man smiled warmly at him, “If we spent our days contemplating what could’ve been, we would have time for nothing else.” Just as Adrien was about to point out that he didn’t answer the question, Fu continued, “I’ve made many mistakes over the last century and a half. Picking you was not one of them.”

 

Suddenly emotional, Adrien struggled to find words. He had never had  _ anybody _ who could see both sides of his life, and reassure him before. He tried to thank the old man, but Fu simply reached out, putting a surprisingly strong hand on Adrien’s shoulder.

 

“Now, let’s find that troublesome kwami now, shall we?” Fu asked, referring to Plagg.

 

**********

 

The tension in Gabriel Agreste’s study was immeasurable. Hawkmoth and his arch nemesis stared each other down, both wary of what the other might do. Ladybug found herself wondering just where the real Mr. Agreste had vanished to, as the fake one had abandoned any attempt at fooling her, instead opting to join Hawkmoth in glaring at her. While Ladybug was pleased with her deduction (turns out hitting Adrien’s father  _ had  _ accomplished something), she was still more than a little bit concerned by her situation. After all, she was still face-to-face with an opponent that had bested her before, and Volpina was still nowhere in sight...

 

After a brief moment of silence, Hawkmoth’s laugh silenced Ladybug’s momentary triumph, and much to the girl’s surprise, the villain looked downright  _ ecstatic _ at her discovery.

 

“Clever girl.” He mused, “But I should’ve expected no less from the one who’s outplayed me at every turn for the last  _ year _ .” He drove his rapier straight into ‘Gabriel’s’ throat, causing the illusion to vanish in a puff of orange smoke, “But I’m afraid your luck has run out this time.” He brandished his weapon, and Ladybug unhooked her yoyo, bracing herself.

 

“Hand over the earrings.” A voice called from the door to the lobby, and Ladybug’s problems were doubled when she saw a tall woman in blue, clenching a feathery fan in her left hand. Ladybug could only guess that this was the mysterious Peacock wieler that had saved Hawkmoth yesterday, “Nobody has to get hurt here, if you just cooperate.” The newcomer said coldly.

 

“Emergency?” Hawkmoth growled at the newcomer, “You and I might need to have a discussion on what  _ exactly _ that word means, Mayura.”

 

“But the point stands.” Mayura didn’t even look at him, her dead eyes boring straight into Ladybug’s soul, “Give it up. You’re outnumbered. Alone. You stand no chance against all three of us.”

 

“None at all.” Another voice agreed from the window, and Ladybug turned to face Lila, or rather Volpina, who had just entered the scene. “We have you right where we want you now.” 

 

Ladybug looked around frantically, and was surprised when Hawkmoth began pressing buttons on Gabriel’s computer. Just a moment too late, she realized that the outer defence system from the time she battled Simon Says here was being activated! Ladybug jumped past Volpina, straight towards the window, but ended up bouncing right off of the gigantic steel barrier that was now blocking her progress.

 

Her progress was impeded further when Volpina’s flute swung low, sweeping her feet out from under her, causing her to land on her back with a gasp.

 

Volpina’s hands went straight for her earrings, but Ladybug managed to pull her legs back, lodging them against the fox’s chest, kicking her off while she scrambled to her feet. Just in time for Mayura’s much stronger hands to grab onto her wrists from behind, pinning them behind her back. Ladybug cried out, frantically moving back and forth as Volpina approached again, a downright evil smirk dominating her features. 

 

Ladybug managed to pull her legs back again, and kick the Italian girl straight in the face, causing her to cry out in pain and anger. The spotted heroine managed to twist while airborne, sliding out of Mayura’s grasp…

 

...Just in time for Hawkmoth’s fist to slam straight into her skull.

 

The force of the blow sent Ladybug slamming straight the office doors with a crash, and back into the mansion foyer. Marinette’s vision was blurry for a brief moment, since the miraculous earrings protected her from most of the damage, but it still  _ hurt _ . 

 

A quick glance to her left confirmed that the mansion doors were just as secure as its windows, meaning she wouldn’t be able to escape that way, either. Hawkmoth, Volpina, and Mayura all chased after her, forming a semicircle around her, backing her against the entrance. Ladybug began to spin her yoyo as a shield, but her usually confident demeanor was gone. Instead, she simply felt afraid, an experience she rarely had to cope with.

 

For not only was Ladybug outnumbered (this was nothing new), she didn’t even have Chat Noir beside her. Somehow, Hawkmoth had known that she would return here this morning, and had managed to set an almost inescapable trap.

 

But how? How had Hawkmoth known she was coming? How did he manage to activate the mansion security system? She knew from her last experience with it that the security system required a handprint to activate…

 

Ladybug’s eyes widened.

 

“...Mr. Agreste.” She accused, trying to maintain a firm tone, but instead cringing as it came out as barely a whisper. “And Nathalie.” Ladybug’s gaze shifted to Mayura, but then straight back to Hawkmo- Mr. Agreste. The man said nothing, simply maintaining eye contact.

 

“You akumatized your own  _ son _ !” She realized with a gasp, “Is  _ that  _ why you upset him?”   
  


“My relation with _my_ _son_ is none of your concern.” Hawkmoth responded tersely, not denying the accusation, “Simply hand over your earrings, and no harm will come to you.”

 

“Oh, I don’t know about that.” Volpina laughed, “Once I get my hands on you-”   
  


“Enough!” Hawkmoth cut her off, glaring at his champion, “That won’t be necessary-”

 

“LUCKY CHARM!” Ladybug called out, throwing her yoyo above her head.

 

But she wasn’t fast enough. As the light of the charm filled the room, all three villains pounced, Hawkmoth moving to catch whatever materialized, Mayura grabbing at her wrists yet again, and Volpina taking a swing straight at her face. Just as a polka-dotted rocket launcher (anybody would have figured out what to do with that) appeared, Hawkmoth managed to snag it.

 

“No!” Ladybug cried, managing to block Volpina’s blow, but unable to stop Mayura from restraining her.

 

Hawkmoth quickly set the launcher aside, and dove straight for the earrings. Ladybug twisted just in time for the supervillain to slam straight into Mayura, causing them both to land just past her. Ladybug heard a cry from right behind her, and turned to counter another blow from Volpina…

 

Only for the attacking fox to vanish on contact, an illusion. Ladybug spun, a second too late as the real Volpina struck from another angle, snagging Ladybug’s left earring just before the heroine could react.

 

“Let’s see who’s miraculous now!” Volpina cried triumphantly, as Marinette’s transformation began to rapidly drop. 

 

Stumbling backwards, Ladybug quickly whipped open her yoyo, desperately opening her contacts to call Chat, but the yoyo vanished before she could finish. Hawkmoth, having returned to his feet, grabbed Ladybug by the shoulder, plucking the other earring out of her right ear, prompting the transformation to drop fully. 

 

Marinette desperately struggled, managing to slide out of the villain’s grasp, and rushing for the staircase, but Volpina reached out, grabbing her with far more force than needed, and slamming the girl against the first step, prompting Marinette to cry out. She looked up at her assailant, and Lila’s eyes flashed with recognition as she realized just how close her worst enemy had been this entire time.

 

“Miss Dupain-Cheng?” Hawkmoth’s jaw dropped, and Marinette’s heart sank as she realized that this was the end of the line. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Marinette is smart, quick, and brave. That being said, she was impossibly outmatched, and locked inside of what was possibly the most secure building in the city. There was no escaping this one.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gabriel and Nathalie raise the severity of their crimes, and Marinette refuses to give up.

 

“...I’ll apologize for using the peacock if you admit you needed me, sir.” Nathalie dismissed, and Gabriel’s eyes narrowed at her dissent.

 

“Between Volpina and I, you weren’t needed.” Gabriel shot back, “And once the security system boxed her in, she had no chance at all.”

 

“And yet she nearly escaped nonetheless.” The assistant countered, “Had she gotten to use that lucky charm, there would be a hole in the side of this building, and a loose superheroine that knows your ident-”

 

Nathalie’s argument was cut off when she was forced to double over in pain. Regardless of how right or wrong she was, the Peacock  _ had _ harmed her, and she was coughing up blood before she knew it. Gabriel immediately rushed forward, steadying her, and helping her over to one of the seats. She appreciated his lack of an ‘I told you so’ for the moment, but it was probably still coming nonetheless.

 

“I warned you-” There it was, “-that this would happen.” He shook his head grimly, “We’re going to need to move against Chat Noir quickly if I’m going to save you.”

 

“Am I interrupting something?” Volpina’s annoyed voice called from the entrance to the office. The girl looked between the two of them with a mixture of amusement and impatience, before continuing, “I’ve got the baker girl restrained for the moment, and the kwami is still here, so what’s our next move?”

 

“If you harmed her-” Gabriel growled, but Volpina waved him off dismissively.

 

“She’s  _ fine _ .” The fox said with a shrug, “I’ll admit I played a bit rough with her, but nothing she can’t handle.” Volpina squinted at Gabriel immediately afterwards, “Why do you care, anyways? She’s been nothing but a thorn in your side for a whole  _ year _ now.”

 

“She’s a  _ child _ .” Gabriel shook his head, turning back to Nathalie, “And a friend of Adrien’s, no less. Not to mention an aspiring designer with enough talent to catch the eye of Audrey Bourgeois.”

 

“Give me a few minutes with her, and you’ll know where Chat Noir and the rest of the miraculous are in no time.” Volpina almost begged, choosing to ignore Gabriel’s praise of her worst enemy for the moment, “Just say the word, and I’ll handle it.”

 

“What you can  _ handle _ ,” Gabriel said through gritted teeth, “Is keeping an eye out for that damn cat. Prepare a fake Ladybug to throw him off if needed.” With that, Gabriel turned away from her dismissively. 

 

With a huff, Volpina stormed out of the room, leaving Gabriel and Nathalie alone again. The two sighed, almost in unison, and Gabriel pulled the Ladybug earrings out of his pocket. Currently in their transformed state, the kwami was still inside of them. The earrings were so small, yet so powerful… To think that Gabriel had almost driven himself mad in his pursuit of these was strange. Even stranger to consider was that they were virtually worthless to him without their counterpart: Chat Noir’s ring. 

 

“If I know Chat Noir,” Gabriel whispered quietly, “and I’ve been fighting him for a long time now, he’ll rush here the moment he learns Ladybug is in danger. Then it’ll be just one more battle, and Emilie is with us again.” Gabriel looked Nathalie straight in the eye, “I’ll admit that Mayura proved more necessary than I anticipated. Will you fight beside me one last time?”

 

The two held an intense eye contact, before Nathalie gave him a nod. He put his hand on hers, and they made a silent pact. This was going to end,  _ today _ . Gabriel may be ruthless, but he wouldn’t keep a teenage girl prisoner for any extended period of time. Whether they both ended up in prison, or got their happily ever after with Emilie, this couldn’t go on.

 

Not far from them, sitting on Gabriel’s desk, an angry black kwami with a sealed mouth glared daggers at the pair. Plagg was contemplating different ways he could fry Gabriel’s brain, when a strange feeling overtook him.

 

In a flash of green light, the small god of destruction vanished, having been successfully summoned back to his holder...

 

**********

 

_ “See what you are now? Volpina sneered, shoving Marinette into one of the guest bedrooms and closing the door behind them, “You’re nothing without those earrings!” _

 

_ “At least I’m not a phony!” Marinette spat back, still defiant without her powers, “At least I don’t have to pretend to be interesting to make friends-” _

 

_ “You’re a phony!” Volpina screeched, cutting Marinette off by slapping her in the face, knocking her onto the ground, “You’re so small, and petty, and jealous, that the only way you can hope of competing with me is using Ladybug to get between me and Adrien!” _

 

_ Stunned by the blow, Marinette started to get back up, feeling her cheek already starting to bruise, when she felt Volpina’s foot on her back, stopping her. _

 

_ “But you know what?” Volpina hissed in her ear, grabbing onto Marinette’s arm and twisting it, causing the girl to cry out in pain, “Even playing that game, I beat you. I made the right friends, and now you’re the one who’s been beaten. You’re a worthless bitch! And now the whole world’s going to know it!” _

 

Volpina had left after that, locking the door behind her. Marinette, still reeling from the physical and emotional wounds, started to cry the moment she was alone. She soothed her cheek, as she realized just how screwed the heroes of Paris were now that Ladybug was no longer among them.

 

Rena Rouge and Carapace were completely unknown. Marinette hadn’t even told Master Fu who they were. And as far as she knew, Chat Noir couldn’t even get in contact with Master Fu at all, leaving her kitty to face Hawkmoth and his allies alone. An impossible task, as she had just learned. All Hawkmoth had to do was send another akuma, and Chat wouldn’t be able to stop it from destroying the city.

 

They had put all of their eggs in one basket, the basket being Marinette. And now that she had lost Tikki… they were done for.

 

“Gah!” Marinette screeched, slamming her fist against the steel-enforced windows of the bedroom, and instantly regretting it as the hand exploded in pain. Not so long ago, Gabriel had mentioned that the place was ‘built like a fortress,’ something Marinette had found confusing then, but now fully understood. She and Chat Noir had stood in Hawkmoth’s lair, without either of them suspecting a thing.

 

Well, that wasn’t entirely true. For a brief time, she’d been onto him, but Mr. Agreste had been cunning enough to akumatize himself. Marinette considered the trick, eventually deciding that he must’ve just had Nathalie do it for him. She shuddered, realizing that Adrien had been living with two supervillains for over a year now.

 

_ Adrien _ . Just thinking about her crush caused her eyes to fill with tears yet again. There was no way that he’d known anything about any of this. The boy clearly had cared for Ladybug a lot, and Marinette liked to think that she was a good enough judge of character to not be fooled  _ that _ easily. The realization that Ladybug was permanently out of the picture-

 

“No!” Marinette shouted, to nobody in particular, shutting down that train of thought.

She wasn’t done yet! She just needed to find a way out of this room. After that, she could find a way to warn Chat Noir, and together, they’d be able to get Tikki back. With her knowledge, they’d be able to recruit Nino, Alya, and even Chloe! Marinette could take up one of the lesser miraculous, and fight by their side. The five of them together could pull this off!

 

“ _ You’re our everyday Ladybug _ .” Adrien’s voice, from yesterday’s picnic, whispered in her ears, reminding her that she didn’t need superpowers to be a hero.

 

Quickly, Marinette began to sweep the room, examining the closet, and inside an old desk, eagerly collecting whatever might be useful to her cause. She allowed a smile back onto her face as she took inventory. A bag of paperclips, a coat hanger, tape, pens, and one of those old bells teachers used to get the class’s attention… Ladybug had made do with much less than this, making something out of this would be a piece of cake for Marinette.

 

**********

 

“Plagg!” Adrien exclaimed excitedly upon seeing his kwami materialize in Fu’s apartment, and Wayzz and Fu shared a smile at his eagerness.

 

But their expressions morphed from amusement into shock when they saw that Plagg’s mouth was… missing? Adrien gaped at the kwami, and Plagg stared straight at him, the kwami’s expression almost completely blank. His eyes, however, carried a sadness Adrien had never seen from his tiny companion before...

 

“Stand aside!” Fu rushed forward, and after mumbling a quick spell, Plagg’s mouth rematerialized.

 

“What happened?” Wayzz demanded, his voice shaky.

 

“It-” Plagg started, and Adrien gasped, having never heard Plagg stutter before, “It’s Tikki! And Duusu, and Nooroo!” Plagg exclaimed, “Ladybug’s been captured!” Adrien practically exploded at that, but Fu put a hand on his shoulder to calm the boy.

 

“Calm, Plagg.” Master Fu soothed, “Just tell us what happened.” Plagg then looked back at Adrien, and lowered his voice, 

 

“It’s your father, kid. He has all of them, and your girl, locked up back at your house. Him and that assistant, they’re the ones behind it all…”

 

“Wait, Father?” Adrien blinked, and narrowed his eyes, “What do you mean, they’re the ones behind it all?” Silence sat between them, and Master Fu’s eyes suddenly widened in shock.

 

“You don’t mean…” Wayzz said, voicing what everybody was starting to put together.

 

“Yeah.” Plagg whispered, “The bug was right, Adrien. Your father… he’s Hawkmoth.”


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien angst, and Master Fu wisdom. Chloe gets involved, and I decide to try my hand at the fandom trope: cat puns.

Adrien hated secrets. For nearly two years now, his father had concealed the exact details about what happened to his mother. Simply  _ not knowing _ where the woman who birthed him was, or why she couldn’t be with him was something the younger Adrien was pathetically unprepared for. If it wasn’t for Chloe, he’s not sure what would’ve happened to him. He almost laughed as he remembered all the times she visited, forcing him to play dress up or whatever other twisted games a boy his age should never have to endure, while their fathers discussed business.

 

But he never resisted. At the time, Adrien was just so  _ thrilled _ to have friend, somebody his age that he could talk to, the  _ only  _ person who even  _ slightly _ understood what it was like to not have their mother around… It wasn’t until he first started attending public school that he realized their relationship wasn’t how real friends treated each other. He still cared about Chloe dearly, and he would never be able to repay her, but the two of them had definitely grown distant with the passage of time.

 

Chloe didn’t like secrets, either. Adrien found himself smiling again as he remembered the day she outed herself as Queen Bee to the entire world, transforming in the middle of a crowd just to show off to her mother. While he understood their purpose, secret identities were something he had always detested on some level, at least with his fellow heroes. 

 

And now, sitting on a park bench, knowing that his father had been Hawkmoth for an entire year now, Adrien found himself hating secrets more than ever.

 

_ “You’re wrong!”  _ Adrien had told Plagg, and the kwami’s face conveyed nothing but regret.

 

“ _ Adrien-”  _ Fu had tried to soothe the boy, but to no avail. Adrien had ended up running, and was now sitting by himself, desperately trying to think about something else.

 

It didn’t work. Unfortunately, much like when Ladybug had told him that she suspected his father, the shoe fit. Gabriel Agreste was cold, distant, and power hungry. He had the financial means to pull off something like this, and Adrien knew deep down that Plagg wouldn’t lie to him like that, not on something this important. The realization that Adrien had battled his own father yesterday made him feel sick, and a nearby billboard with his name and face reminded the boy that his father had turned him into Model Son not twelve hours ago. 

 

“Things weren’t always like this…” Adrien said out loud, to nobody in particular, pulling out the photograph that had hosted his akuma. Ladybug’s cure had fixed it, of course, “...he used to be so happy, when Mother was here. He made time for me back then, too.”

 

Looking around the park, Adrien saw a lot of happy families. Families of all different sizes and backgrounds. It was a sight Adrien hated to look at, not out of any bitterness towards them, but because it reminded him of what he didn’t have, what he  _ hadn’t  _ had, since the day his mother had left them. 

 

“Mother…” Adrien whispered, “What I wouldn’t give to have you back now...”

 

But his mother wasn’t coming back. And right now, the city didn’t need him to wallow in self-pity. What the city needed, what  _ Ladybug _ needed, was a hero. Somebody who would face the big bad guy, whether it was his father, or a stranger he’d never met. Chat Noir had never been an impressive hero, Adrien knew that. But right now, he was all they had.

 

“The weather is pleasant.” And just like that, Master Fu was next to him on the bench, gazing out at the park alongside the young model.

 

“How do you do that?” Adrien sighed, not even looking at him. When Master Fu arched an eyebrow, Adrien continued, “The whole “and suddenly I’m here” trick you keep doing. How come I never notice you?”

 

“A  _ lot _ of practice.” Fu chuckled, and they fell into a comfortable silence.

 

“If Hawkmoth were anybody but  _ him _ , I’d be there right now, trying to save her.” Adrien remarked grimly.

 

“I know you would.” Fu agreed, “And chances are you would be captured by now, just as your partner is.”

 

Adrien shuddered at that. It hurt to realize how many times his own father had indirectly harmed him, even if it was unintentional. Between Princess Fragrance, Despair Bear, Puppeteer, and Zombizou, Chat Noir had been placed under the direct control of akumatized villains on numerous occasions. And that wasn’t mentioning the countless times akumas had otherwise affected him.

 

He couldn’t help himself, his hand balled into a fist as he realized how often akumas had gone after his civilian self too, where his father didn’t have the excuse of anonymity. Pixelator and Style Queen had directly hurt him, and Gorizilla…

 

“He let me fall off a building!” Adrien exclaimed, utterly shocked at the memory, and Fu gave him a grim nod.

 

“The hearts of men often turn black in the pursuit of power.” Fu sighed, “Gabriel Agreste is not the first to seek absolute power.”

 

“But he…” Adrien’s eyes teared up, replaying all the times his father had spoken with him recently, desperate to find something to disprove Fu’s theory, that his father was just a power-hungry maniac, but was unable to produce it. Adrien was left with the crushing realization that he didn’t know that man that well.

 

“...Maybe I could talk to him?” The boy found himself almost begging, “Surely if he knew that I was Chat Noir-”

 

“Hawkmoth  _ cannot _ know the identity of Chat Noir, no matter what.” The old man interrupted, steel in his eyes, “If he learns who you are, he will attempt other methods of persuasion.”

 

The silence between them was deafening. Adrien squirmed in his seat, hopelessly trying to come up with a way they could end this fight without another fight with his own father. 

 

Ever since his mother had left… Adrien had given Gabriel the benefit of the doubt. After all, the man was going through just as much as his son was. More than anything, all that Adrien had ever wanted from him was his love, his validation. Adrien had forgiven the broken promises, the missed performances, and the ridiculous schedule. He’d worked his ass off for his father’s company, all because he wanted to make his dad happy.

 

But no more. For the first time, Adrien felt a distinct  _ bitterness _ towards his father, an emotion he had hidden so deeply not even an akuma had found it.

 

“What are we going to do to him?” Adrien found himself asking, unsure of what he wanted the answer to be, “ _ If _ I somehow manage to get the upper hand.”

 

“Truth be told… I don’t know.” Fu admitted quietly, “All I know for certain is that the Peacock, Butterfly, and Ladybug Miraculous  _ must _ be recovered. We can worry about the rest later.”

 

The reminder that Ladybug, the love of his life, was currently captured was enough to cause the young model to stand up angrily.

 

“Every second we waste here is another second that Ladybug is still in Fath-  _ Hawkmoth’s _ clutches!” Adrien found himself saying, “We have to do something!” 

 

“That much is certain,” Fu agreed, quietly examining the bracelet on his wrist, “but I will not have you face this trial alone.”

 

“ _ You’re _ going to help me?” Adrien’s jaw dropped, and a glint appeared in the old man’s eye.

 

“Unless you know the name of the young lad Ladybug recruited to be Carapace?” Fu asked, and Adrien shook his head, “Do you have somebody else in mind?”

 

“We  _ should  _ recruit some more help.” Adrien considered, “If Father and Nathalie  _ and _ Volpina are all waiting for us, like Plagg said, we’ll need a lot more than just us two.”

 

“I agree.” Fu said, removing a small black and red box from his pocket, and placing it in Adrien’s hand, “If you think she’s up to it, find our Queen Bee, give her the Miraculous, and take her back to my apartment, where we can brainstorm a plan of attack.”

 

“ _ She  _ gets to meet you?” Adrien’s eyes narrowed, “After all the red tape I had to work through to meet you just  _ once _ ?”

 

“Things are different now.” Fu said simply with a shrug, “Now that Ladybug’s identity has been exposed, it’s entirely possible that the location of the Miraculous has been compromised. Concealing myself from those aligned to oppose Hawkmoth… would be rather pointless now.”

 

“Ladybug would never tell Hawkmoth where you are!” Adrien insisted.

 

“Not of her own free will.” Fu countered darkly, “But you know first hand that Hawkmoth has methods of controlling the mind at his disposal.”

 

The silence that sat between them was very uncomfortable. Adrien looked out across the park again, where one little boy was crying after falling off a slide. His mother had rushed to his side, and was fussing over him, insisting that he was okay. The whole situation was alien to him, as he had never been allowed at the park as a little kid, but he felt warm inside seeing them nonetheless.

 

“So we must make haste.” Fu declared, rising back to his feet, and looking back at Adrien with determination, “For Ladybug’s sake.”

 

For the girl that had won his heart. Adrien found himself seeing red as the full weight of his father’s actions set it. She was somewhere in the mansion, right now, probably terrified, and very alone. Adrien knew that she was always the better hero between them, and he had no idea how Fu, Chloe, and himself were going to come even close to winning, but he knew that he had to try.

 

“For Ladybug.” Adrien whispered in agreement, and Fu departed with an affirming nod.

 

“Hey kid.” Plagg, who had been observing from a distance, flew over and landed on Adrien’s lap, looking him in the eyes.

 

“Plagg…” Adrien’s eyes teared up, “I’m so sorry-”

 

“Nope.” Plagg flew up and put a paw on Adrien’s mouth, stopping him mid-sentence, “You didn’t do  _ anything _ wrong, and even if you did, now’s not the time for it.” Adrien had never seen Plagg so serious before in his life, “What it  _ is  _ time for is action! Both of our girls need our help, and we’re going to save them, no matter the cost!”

 

“I thought your only true love was camembert?” Adrien found himself smiling, despite the situation.

 

“My cheese matters a lot.” Plagg said seriously, “It’s been there for me through thick and thin, through good times and bad, in-”

 

“You’ve given me this speech already.” Adrien snorted, “At least three times.”

 

“But Tikki,” Plagg smiled, ignoring his chosen’s interruption, “She’s even  _ better _ . She’s my other half, my mythical equivalent. She was there long before humans invented cheese, and she’ll remain here long after.”

 

“You love her a lot, huh?” The boy was suddenly emotional again, thinking about Ladybug.

 

“ _ A lot _ doesn’t even begin to cover it.” Plagg laughed, “So come on kid! What are you waiting for? Let’s go!”

 

Adrien smiled back at the kwami’s antics. Plagg liked to pretend he was heartless, but Adrien had learned a long time ago that the kwami cared about  _ a lot _ of things, including him.

 

But as much as Adrien wanted to ride the kwami’s enthusiasm, there were other things that needed to be taken care of first.

 

“Not just yet,” Adrien soothed his eager companion, “first, we have to go get Chloe.”

 

“Ugh…” Plagg deflated, “Really?  _ Her? _ ”

 

“Really.” Adrien laughed, “And then, we’re going to have to draw up a plan too.”

 

“I’m already bored.” Plagg shook his head with a sigh, “Hurry up and transform then! The sooner we get this done, the sooner we go save them!”

 

Adrien looked over at the Bourgeois hotel, one of the only places he knew well besides his own home. With a nod, Adrien ducked into the park restrooms, and called upon the power of Chat Noir for the first time in what felt like an eternity. In reality, it had been less than a day, but the feeling was still spectacular.

 

As he vaulted towards the hotel to pick up his oldest friend, the utterly ludicrous nature of the situation fully hit him. He would’ve never thought that he’d be suiting up to face his own father alongside  _ Chloe  _ of all people and a short Chinese man in a Hawaiian shirt, but such was life.

 

**********

 

“Why won’t he answer?” Chloe growled in frustration after a fifteenth failed call to Adrien.

 

This was a growing pattern with that boy, one that Chloe had yet to determine the source of. For many years, Adrien had been almost instantaneous responding to her calls, but ever since he had started school, he had started to have long blind spots where he didn’t answer. One of which seemed to be happening right now.

 

And now, more than ever, she needed to talk to him. After waking up, Chloe had immediately discovered that her oldest friend had been akumatized last night! The blonde girl had been immediately taken aback, since Adrien was one of the calmest and most collected people she knew, but more time to reflect had left her more than a little worried. Adrien put up a brave front, but he was often melancholy, even before his mother had left him. Chloe needed to learn what had gone wrong, and fast!

 

However, she was distracted by a knocking on her window. Chloe frowned, as that shouldn’t be possible this high off the ground, but a quick investigation revealed the now familiar sight of Chat Noir carrying her Miraculous. The blonde girl immediately rushed to the window and opened it, allowing the feline entry.

 

“I’m looking for one Chloe Bourgeois?” The cat asked sarcastically, because apparently he couldn’t make  _ anything _ simple, “She’s a part-time superhero, which is pretty cool, but she clearly didn’t read the terms and conditions or privacy policy because she somehow managed to blow her cover on the  _ first day _ .”

 

“Very funny.” Chloe shook her head, really not in the mood because of Adrien, “I take it you and Ladybug need me again?”

 

“Well, yeah.” Chat answered, dropping his playful facade, “Her more than me, but yeah.”

 

“Well, if you  _ don’t mind _ ,” Chloe turned away in annoyance, “Go find that insolent fox or turtle and leave me alone.” She quickly looked at her phone, hoping to see any kind of response from Adrien, “Right now, I’m kind of in the middle of something…”

 

“Ah, well, I can’t seem to find them. Believe me, if I could get anybody else, I’d be getting them now too.” At this, Chloe frowned, having not heard anything about any akumas since last night. Turning to face the feline hero, she saw that his expression was far more grim than she had ever seen it. 

 

“But the situation is a lot worse than you realize, Chloe. Ladybug’s been captured, and she’s the only one who knows who Rena and Carapace are.”

 

“Wait…” Chloe’s jaw dropped, and her composure with it. “ _Ladybug’s_ _been captured!?_ ”

 

That couldn’t be right. Ladybug, the powerful hero, the first person in a long time that Chloe found herself actually respecting, was in trouble? That girl was nearly invincible, there was no way! She was the only person Chloe had ever truly confided in (even more than Adrien). She was somebody that actually  _ believed _ in Chloe, believed in her enough to trust her with being a hero, even after how badly she screwed up the first time.

 

“Yes.” Chat said quietly, “Just this morning...”

 

Chloe’s heart almost stopped as she realized that Chat Noir was recruiting her to go and face whatever had taken her out, and a cold feeling nearly overtook her as she was able to guess who that was.

 

“It’s Hawkmoth, isn’t it?” Chloe whispered, and Chat nodded, his ears drooping. 

 

The man behind it all. Hawkmoth had directly targeted Chloe  _ twice _ , making her fight Ladybug on both occasions, something that she would  _ never _ forgive him for. And not only that, Chloe’s record of causing akumas meant that she had been attacked by the villains on countless occasions.

 

But Chloe had never been afraid of Hawkmoth before yesterday. After all, he was just some loser cosplaying in his parents’ basement most likely, his tacky costume evidence enough of that.  

 

Yesterday, however, Hawkmoth had proved that he  _ could _ fight, and he could fight well. He had managed to take out both Ladybug and Chat Noir together, without a weapon. And if Chloe hadn’t stepped in when she did (those other two helped as well, she supposed), he would’ve succeeded in his mission right then and there. The idea of facing that guy sent a chill up her spine.

 

“And  _ we’re _ going to fight him???” Chloe questioned, panic taking over her voice, “We-We’ll get destroyed! You saw how he handled you two yesterday, and now you want to fight him without Ladybug!?”

 

“Chloe.” Chat soothed, reaching out and putting a hand on her shoulder, “We  _ can _ beat him. We can and we will.”

 

For a moment, Chloe was actually comforted. Then she remembered that this was Chat Noir talking to her, and not Ladybug. The guy that got taken out by the villains  _ all the time _ . She didn’t have anything against him personally, but she couldn’t excuse his prior record. 

 

“That’s ridiculous!” Chloe protested, “Utterly ridiculous! Without Ladybug, we’re  _ nothing _ . You’ve been mind controlled like…  _ five times! _ ”

 

“ _ Four times _ .” The feline hissed back at her, “That business with Dark Cupid doesn’t count. I was just filled with hate, that wannabe didn’t control me.”

 

“Whatever!” The blonde snapped angrily, “The point is, she’s going to need a  _ hell _ of a lot more than just us two to save her.”

 

Chat visibly deflated at that, and Chloe couldn’t help but feel bad. Deep down, she knew that her less than positive comments weren’t helping anything, and Chat Noir needed a partner if he was going to have any fighting chance.

 

“We do have one advantage.” Chat said solemnly, “We managed to discover his identity.”

 

The blonde girl waited expectantly for him to continue, and inform her of  _ who _ exactly had been harassing her for the last year, but the feline was unchracteristically silent. He seemed… sad, and not just because of the business with Ladybug. There seemed to be something else, too, something that he was currently leaving unsaid.

 

“Well?” Chloe asked, “Care to enlighten me?”

 

“He’s Gabriel Agreste.” The hero whispered, and Chloe’s entire world stopped for a moment.

 

That  _ couldn’t _ be. There was no way. Chat must have taken some hardcore catnip, because Gabriel Agreste wasn’t a magical terrorist. The man was her own  _ godfather _ , and while quite cold at times, Chloe had never thought of him as  _ evil _ . After all, the man was the father of Adrien, one of the most docile and friendly people she’d ever known.

 

“What?” Chloe voiced her doubt, “That’s utterly ridiculous! Gabriel Agreste designs  _ clothes _ for a living, he doesn’t create supervillains in his free time!”

 

“If only…” Chat trailed off, despondent, and Chloe was confused. She had expected Chat to argue the point with her, but he was instead maintaining an unusual amount of silence. It was as if Gabriel Agreste was a person that mattered to him, and he didn’t want to believe the charge either. 

 

“You know him, don’t you?” Chloe reasoned, studying his face. His eyes widened for split second, and the girl realized that she was onto something. He immediately shook his head and tried to regain his composure, but she realized she had struck a nerve. She practically jumped out of her window when she realized that there was a very real chance that she had met Chat Noir outside of his costume before, considering that the Bourgeois and Agreste families ran in the same social circles.

 

“Don’t be ridiculous.” Chat scoffed, trying to play off her accusation.

 

“What makes you say he’s Hawkmoth?” Chloe let it slide for the moment.

 

“My kwami  _ saw him _ .” The hero grit his teeth angrily, “Not only that, but you’re aware that Gabriel Agreste has left his house exactly  _ twice _ in the last two  _ years? _ The guy has more than enough time to do whatever the hell he wants.”

 

That attitude rang familiar… Chloe was reminded of somebody she knew, but she couldn’t immediately place it. But gazing at the boy’s now annoyed and hurt expression, the pieces suddenly fit together, and Chloe gasped.

 

“Felix Agreste!” Chloe shouted.  _ Of course! _ It made perfect sense. Chat Noir was Adrien’s cousin Felix, something she should’ve picked up on the day she met him. They had the same blond hair, muscular build, bright green eyes, occasionally brooding attitude… It was a perfect match.

 

“What!?” Chat jumped, “No, I’m not-”

 

“Oh my God!” Chloe interrupted, fully processing what Felix was saying, “You have to go fight your own  _ uncle _ ! This is worse than Lion King!”

 

“Claws in!” Chat Noir snapped, and a green light engulfed the room, leaving two rich blonde teenagers, one staring in disbelief, and the other shocked by his own actions. A black kwami floated next to the picture perfect face of  _ Adrien _ Agreste, his face a mixture of annoyance at the detransformation, and amusement at the situation. After a quick moment, the amusement seemed to win, and the small cat turned towards Chloe.

 

“Hey blondie, the name’s Plagg, nice to meet you.” Unable to process anything, the girl just stared at him. 

 

“Isn’t the kitchen just a few floors below us?” Plagg asked, and Chloe could only nod in response.

 

“Then I’ll be back in ten. You two have fun.” And with that, the kwami phased through the floor, leaving the two stunned teenagers staring at each other.

 

“Well…” Adrien started awkwardly, before a small smile teased the corners of his lips, “I guess I’m sorry if I paw-t you off guard?”

 

Chloe couldn’t decide whether she wanted to hug him or kill him in that moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the wait on this one, I hope to have the next one up by Easter.
> 
> Thanks a ton for reading this! As always, comments / kudos make my day.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lila is cruel, Marinette is crafty, Chloe can't believe what she's seeing, and Adrien loses his temper.

“Come on!” Marinette whisper-yelled, as she thrust the twisted paperclick into the lock yet again, growing more and more frustrated by her lack of success.

 

She was becoming less and less hopeful by the minute. She missed her parents and Alya, who were always there to support her in her civilian life. Memories of struggling to hide her double life from the protective parents and sharp reporter were almost enough to make her smile, but the harsh reality of her situation, and the fear of never seeing them again suppressed it.

 

She missed Adrien, even though she knew he was probably just a few rooms over, completely oblivious to the horrors unfolding within his own house. Even beyond her feelings for him, she respected him a lot, having learned from stalking _following_ him that he had the busiest schedule of anybody had ever met.

 

She both missed her kitty and was desperately worried for him, knowing that Hawkmoth would be moving against him  _ soon _ . He joked around too much, he couldn’t take a hint, but he was Marinette’s best friend in the world besides Alya. 

 

More than anything, she missed having Tikki’s voice to guide her, and tell her than no matter what, things  _ would  _ work out in the end. She redoubled her efforts to open the door, jamming the paper clip into the lock once again, but was interrupted by a sound behind her...

 

“Up to no good, I see.” A teasing male voice came from behind her.

 

“Chat Noir?” Marinette gasped, dropping her makeshift lockpick in surprise. She turned around to see her partner, who must have entered through the now-open window.

 

“Shh…” The cat held a finger to his mouth, “We’ve got to get you out of here, M’lady. And fast!”

 

He reached out to grab her hand, and the moment their hands touched, the illusion vanished in a puff of orange smoke, quickly accompanied by the exaggerated laughter of Lila. Marinette’s heart sank, as she should’ve seen that one coming. She quickly stepped clear of the door when she heard it unlock.

 

“Not so clever now.” Volpina sneered, entering the room with a smug look in her eyes, “I  _ can’t believe _ you fell for that one.” Marinette was fortunately able to hold her tears back. The Italian girls trick had been  _ cruel _ .

 

“What do you want, Lila?” Marinette tried to sound defiant, but knew that she might be in real trouble for trying to escape.

 

“Honestly?” The girl remarked, “What I  _ want _ is to beat your face into the concrete then toss you into the Seine.” Marinette couldn’t help but start to tremble, “But unfortunately, your little guardian angel back in his office has other ideas.”

 

“You mean Hawkmoth?” Marinette blinked in surprise, but her eyes weren’t on Volpina’s face. Instead, the raven-haired girl found herself eyeing a bracelet on the fox’s wrist that looked suspiciously out of place...

 

“ _ Yeah _ .” Volpina snapped, contempt dripping from her voice, “Didn’t know he was such a softie deep down.” She shook her head in disappointment, “So I’ve been thinking about this one a lot; what’s a good story about you escaping, and leaving me no choice?” Volpin reached out suddenly, grabbing Marinette’s wrist in one fluid motion, eliciting a pained gasp from the shorter girl, as she snatched the twisted paper clip from her

 

“...But luckily for me, I don’t even have to lie this time.” She finished, an excited glint in her eyes that would haunt Marinette for years to come.

 

Instinct took over, as Marinette grabbed the stapler with her free hand, and drove it straight into Volpina’s head. The villain blinked in surprise, not hurt from the blow due to her superpowers, but the force of the hit was still enough to cause her to relax her grip on Marinette’s wrist, an opportunity that  _ Ladybug _ wouldn’t miss, as she slid right out of her grip, reaching back just in time to slide the bracelet off the Italian girl’s wrist.

 

“You little-” Volpina started, but was interrupted when Marinette tore the bracelet in half triumphantly, and a little black butterfly flew out, causing Volpina to fade away back into Lila Rossi. Still dangerous, but not superpowered.

 

“What… the hell?” Lila was dazed, and started looking around in confusion, but Marinette was already gone.

 

**********

 

“Seriously though.” Chloe pressed him, “A whole year, and you didn’t tell  _ me _ ?”

“We’ve been over this.” Adrien sighed in return, “I wasn’t allowed to tell  _ anybody _ . Not even Ladybug knows who I am.”

“But this old man we’re going to see…” Chloe considered, “ _ He’s  _ allowed to know?” She beckoned at the building in front of them.

Chloe’s voice had a note of disdain as they entered the old man’s apartment complex, and she began to look at the building like Adrien was a realtor selling her a sewage plant for a house. The location wasn’t quite  _ poor _ , not by any stretch, but Chloe was obviously less acquainted with the parts of Parisian society that didn’t live in luxury hotels. Adrien wasn’t really either, for that matter, but the boy had gotten a lot more perspective from his time in public school. 

“He’s the one who gave me the Miraculous in the first place.” Adrien explained, “I suppose there’s nothing we can do about him knowing who I am.”

“The kid wasn’t supposed to tell  _ you _ either.” Plagg said crossly, glaring at Chloe, “But unfortunately we’re going to have to make an exception for this.”

“Well of course.” Chloe beamed with pride, before arguing a bit more, “But wouldn’t it make a lot of sense for Ladybug to share her identity with Chat Noir and Queen Bee?”

“Rules are rules.” Plagg waved a dismissive paw, “I don’t write them, and I’ve given up trying to understand them.”

“We can worry about that later, My Queen.” Pollen said happily from her perch on the girl’s shoulder, “Right now, we just need to save Tikki.”

Chloe did have a point, as far as Adrien was concerned. He’d wanted to share identities with Ladybug for as long as he’d known her, and just didn’t understand why they couldn’t. It wasn’t like with Chloe, where she told the entire city, he just wanted it to be between him and Ladybug. Was that really so dangerous?

“Master?” Adrien called into Fu’s apartment, where the door was already open. The old man himself was sitting at his table, squinting at a tablet, an annoyed look on his face as he tried to decipher some of the Miraculous secrets. He looked up when addressed, however.

“Chat Noir, Queen Bee.” Fu looked between them, an eyebrow arched when he saw that they weren’t transformed.

“Sorry…” Adrien said sheepishly, but the old man simply sighed.

“The time for secrets has passed, I suppose.” Fu admitted quietly.

“So  _ you’re _ the one passing out miraculous?” Chloe demanded, eyeing him suspiciously.

“Only in the case of Ladybug and your friend Adrien.” Fu nodded, “Ladybug recruited Rena Rouge and Carapace on her own, and you obviously came into possession of the Bee Miraculous in a… unique way.” Chloe beamed again at that, clearly interpreting the ambiguous comment as a compliment, as she often did. Her glee was short-lived, however, as she suddenly frowned at the rest of the master’s statement.

“Wait… Ladybug didn’t tell  _ either _ of you who they were?” Chloe frowned, looking between the young model and the old master, “You have  _ no way _ of contacting those two?”

“Well, no.” Fu admitted quietly, “I simply trusted Ladybug to recruit them when they were needed. It didn’t occur to me that the day might come where she wasn’t available to us.”

An uncomfortable silence sat between them at that. Chloe’s face was wrinkled in confusion as she tried to piece together what  _ exactly _ Fu and Adrien had been thinking, while Fu looked almost guilty. Adrien, in turn, was growing a little bit upset as he realized that Chloe was exactly right with her questions.

“Well, news flash, that day has come!” The girl snapped angrily, her confusion melting into annoyance, “And if it wasn’t for my ‘unique’ choice of sharing my identity, you would have exactly  _ one _ superhero.” She pointed at Adrien, before apologizing, “No offence.”

“None taken.” Adrien nodded.

“We don’t have time to dwell on the mistakes of the past.” Fu desperately tried to change the subject, “We can only plan for what is to-”

“Or maybe,” Chloe cut in, venom dripping from her voice, “We don’t want to make those mistakes _again_ , and we need to make sure that we’re _all_ on the same page _right now_.” The girl’s insolence prompted Pollen and Wayzz to gasp in shock, while Plagg tried to suppress a chuckle. Adrien simply wanted to see what the old master had to say in defence.

The tension in the room was becoming unbearable, as Chloe and Master Fu held an intense eye contact, Chloe’s face contorted in frustration, while Fu maintained a poker face. Despite years of her father simply giving into her demands, Chloe still had a way of shaming people into compliance that Adrien had never quite mastered. Or wanted to, since it was painfully rude, but the boy was beginning to see the appeal of his oldest friend’s attitude.

Because seriously, Chloe was damn right. Even if Chat Noir couldn’t know Rena Rouge or Carapace’s identities for whatever reason (he should know them), Master Fu  _ definitely _ should, as they were all learning the hard way. Adrien’s ancient indignation at being left out of the loop was beginning to boil over, almost eclipsing his anger at his father for an entire year of domestic terrorism.

“We’re in the endgame now.” Fu said simply, finally breaking the silence, “With Hawkmoth and Ladybug’s identities exposed, this war will come to an end  _ today _ .” Adrien felt a spike of annoyance as Fu ignored Chloe.

“No.” Adrien growled, “I need to know  _ why  _ I’ve been kept out of the loop for so long.”

“Hell yeah.” Chloe nodded, and they both fixed Fu with almost identical glares.

“I had my reasons.” Fu said pointedly, annoyance creeping into his voice as well, “I had concerns, some that I will be willing to discuss  _ later _ .” He gave Adrien an odd look, and the boy’s frown deepened. What did he mean  _ concerns? _ The young model suddenly gasped in realization, as it became clear  _ exactly  _ what the old man meant.

“We must focus on the current objective.” Wayzz cut in, trying to defuse the situation, but Adrien would have none of it.

“You  _ knew _ .” Adrien spat, and Master Fu simply held his gaze, “You  _ knew _ that my father was Hawkmoth, didn’t you?”

“I suspected.” The old man countered defensively, “Ladybug and I discussed the possibility that Gabriel Agreste possessed the Butterfly Miraculous, a possibility that I wasn’t able to rule out completely-”

“You knew, and you didn’t say  _ anything! _ ” Adrien practically screamed, causing a stir amongst the kwamis, “Did it ever occur to you that  _ maybe _ I might want to know that my father is a  _ fucking _ supervillain!?”

Chloe literally gasped, for Adrien  _ never  _ swore. She was ready to join him, as she was equally outraged by the situation, but to see Adrien so angry… was a bit unnerving. Coupled with the fact that Adrien had been akumatized last night, this newfound anger made Chloe even more worried for her old friend than she already was. And by anger, she really meant  _ rage _ . Both of the boy’s hands were balled into fists, his jaw was clenched, and he was literally shaking.

“Well guess what?” Adrien spat, “I don’t need _ you! _ I’m going to go handle this  _ my way _ . And after  _ I  _ save Ladybug, Hawkmoth’s going to pay for what he’s done, and  _ I’m  _ going to be the one who does it!”

“Adrien, don’t do this!” Fu’s eyes widened, and he immediately rose to his feet, “Running ahead on your own will only play into Hawkmoth’s hand! We must work  _ together! _ ”

“What?” Adrien stopped at the door, “You don’t like not being  _ included _ ?”

Fu continued to protest, but the next sound to come from Adrien was the slamming of the apartment door as the boy stormed out. The old master turned to Chloe, his eyes full of panic, but the blonde had no sympathy to spare. Rather than try to reason with him, Chloe simply bolted out of the apartment, following the boy.

For a long moment, Fu and Wayzz were both silent, panic written on both of their faces, but neither acted. In nearly two centuries, Fu had made a lot of mistakes. The temple’s destruction… that was on him. Losing the Peacock and Butterfly? Also him. And now, it seemed as though the Black Cat, Ladybug, and Bee could all be lost as well.

“Master?” Wayzz asked timidly, sensing his wielder’s distress, “What are we going to do?”

Fu had nothing to offer in response, instead allowing tears to begin to flow from his ancient eyes. In that moment, nearly two lifetimes of mistakes were playing out again in his mind; from the destruction of the temple to the day he decided that hiding the truth from Adrien would somehow help the situation…

“Master!” Wayzz exclaimed, but the old man simply stared off into space, seemingly deaf to his companion’s words.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a fan theory of mine for a while now that Master Fu knows or at least suspects that Gabriel is Hawkmoth, and that's why he won't let Adrien in the loop nearly as much as Marinette. Especially given the way that he says it's "highly probable" that Gabriel isn't after the Collector, but doesn't outright exonerate him.
> 
> Furthermore, Fu has a distinct reason to keep his cards close to his chest until he gets confirmation, for both Adrien and Marinette's sake. He wouldn't want to throw around that accusation without proof to the man's son, and Marinette's feelings for Adrien make the situation even more complicated.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette ends up in a fight for her life, while Chloe and Adrien think of a creative plan...

Adrien’s room never failed to impress her, even though Marinette had visited it as Ladybug on several occasions now. There were countless expensive items that screamed “overcompensation!” loud and clear from a parent with not enough time in his busy schedule to raise a son. For goodness sake, there was literally a skateboard ramp! The room was almost exactly unchanged from her last visit, the only difference being a lack of any natural light due to all of the windows being blocked by the Agreste security system.

 

“Adrien!” Marinette called out quietly, not sure whether she wanted him to be there or not.

 

For on the one hand, she  _ desperately _ needed help, and Adrien’s cell phone might be her only way to reach the outside world, but on the other hand… she wasn’t sure if either of them was ready to have this conversation. After all, she couldn’t exactly just approach him and say “ _ Hey, Adrien! I know I look like your good friend Marinette right now, but I’m actually your celebrity crush / local superheroine Ladybug! Also, your Dad’s a supervillain, and I’m going to go fight him as soon as I get the chance! Can I borrow your phone?” _

 

That particular concern was soothed, however, when the room appeared empty. She was immediately frantic as she wondered where the boy could’ve gotten to, but quickly decided that she shouldn’t complain. She immediately listened closely to see if the shower was on, since  _ that _ was something to be avoided at all costs, and was relieved that she wasn’t about to add a third part to that misadventure.

 

An angry buzzing caught her attention, however, and she almost leaped with joy when she saw her crush’s cell phone unattended on his desk, exploding with missed calls. A guilty smile appeared on her face when she realized that she knew the code to access it too, after the time she’d stolen it.

 

“ _ Don’t _ .” An angry voice called from behind her, just as she was about to approach the phone.

 

Marinette whirled around to see Lila standing in the doorway, her eyes nearly glowing in contempt. Marinette clenched her jaw, unwilling to be intimidated. No longer Volpina, Lila was now just a regular girl like her.

 

“Or what?” Marinette challenged, assuming a fighting stance. It wasn’t  _ quite  _ the same without superpowers, but there was no other option.

 

“Or I’ll  _ make _ you.” Lila shot back through clenched teeth, and brazenly approached her opponent.

 

Immediately, Marinette lunged, grabbing at the Italian girl’s hair, but Lila was surprisingly nimble, managing to sidestep the attack and lunge straight at Mari.

 

The two continued to grab at each other, with Marinette feeling herself beginning to get overwhelmed by Lila’s greater stature. Lila reached, grabbing at Marinette’s neck with a sneer. The raven-haired girl tried to shove her off, but ended up resorting to balling her hand into a fist, and driving it straight into the other girl’s jaw. It didn’t pack nearly the punch it did during her time as Ladybug, but it was still enough to cause Lila to cry out in pain and release her neck.

 

Winded, Marinette gasped for air, clutching at her throat as she backed away. Lila rushed again, and this time Marinette managed to sidestep, leaving a foot to trip her assailant, causing Lila to stumble but not fall over.

 

“Why!?” Marinette demanded, as they began to circle each other, “You’ve gotta realize that Hawkmoth’s inane, right?”

 

“You  _ humiliated _ me.” Lila spat blood out of her mouth, “All I did was spice up a story to charm a cute boy, and you went ahead and  _ ruined _ me.”

 

“Apparently not.” Marinette scowled, thinking back to how all of her friends seemed to believe everything Lila said without question, “Because apparently I’m  _ still _ the only one who sees you for what you are… Me and  _ Hawkmoth, _ I suppose.” Marinette managed to get her breath back, but could tell that there would be a mark on her throat.

 

Rather than responding, Lila simply rushed her again, swinging a fist that Marinette simply stepped back to avoid. Lila followed up by tackling the smaller girl, prompting Marinette to slam into Adrien’s nightstand, headfirst, knocking over the buzzing cell phone. Marinette managed to get a hand on Lila’s wavy brown hair, and pulled, yielding a screech from her assailant. Marinette’s vision was beginning to blur, and the pain on the back of her head seemed to be only growing. 

 

“Get. Off. Me!” Marinette panted, and managed to shove Lila off with one strong push.

 

The two were about to clash again, when both of their eyes widened in unison at the sight of the walls turning into a fine black ash...

 

**********

 

Gabriel Agreste had grown accustomed to hard work. After all, getting this close to saving the woman he loved had taken two entire years of dedicated research. And before that, winning her heart had taken nearly half of a decade of dedicated charm. Building a fashion empire? That took a lot of time, effort, and risks.

 

But one thing Gabriel wasn’t used to was  _ waiting. _ Everything in his life, every  _ problem _ could be solved with meticulous planning or constant effort, or so he believed. Because now, the hours he spent waiting for Chat Noir to arrive were turning into the longest he had ever experienced, only rivalled by the first time he and Emilie waited to hear whether or not their newborn son was going to survive the night…

 

The memory caused the designer to freeze, drawing a look of questioning from his loyal assistant, but Gabriel didn’t even look at her. It had been such a  _ happy _ day at first. Emilie was overjoyed to have a child, and while Gabriel had been hesitant at first, his attitude had completely changed the moment he laid eyes on his son, feeling himself moved by a pure  _ love _ he hadn’t anticipated. 

 

But the doctors had been in a frenzy the moment the boy was born, forcing Gabriel out of the room. He was only allowed back in once his son had been rushed to an operating room for emergency surgery to save his life, leaving Gabriel and his wife to share tearful embraces.

 

Gabriel had felt so  _ powerless _ in that moment. Even after the doctors managed to save his son, he resolved to  _ never _ feel that way again. Never again would he fear for the life of his son, nor would he allow anything to happen to his wife.

 

It didn't work, needless to say, and the designer had to bite back a bitter laugh. Now, Emilie was on the verge of dying, and Adrien had become the victim of his own father far too many times.

 

“The kwami vanished more than an hour ago...” Gabriel muttered, “Why hasn’t Chat Noir attacked?”

 

Months and months of battle had proven that Chat Noir was capable of little more than blindly rushing into battle. The boy had been immobilized by his akuma on countless occasions, and even mind-controlled into fighting on his side several times. Of his primary two opponents, Chat Noir was  _ by far _ the lesser threat. Which meant that fighting the cat on his own shouldn’t be frightening Gabriel as much as it was.

 

“Perhaps he’s planning an attack?” Nathalie suggested, and her face betrayed a rare nervousness as well.

 

“Chat Noir doesn’t  _ plan _ .” Gabriel dismissed, “He  _ acts. _ ”

 

“If you say so.” Nathalie said quietly, clearly unconvinced.

 

His assistant’s condition had mostly stabilized, but she still looked winded, and Gabriel had learned firsthand that things were only going to get worse. And what should’ve frightened him only strengthened his resolve, as he realized that this was becoming almost as much about saving Nathalie as it was Emilie. He didn’t  _ love _ his assistant, at least not in that way, but her constant support was something he would never forget.

 

“I take it you disagree?” The designer demanded, and the tall woman sighed.

 

“It’s like you’ve said,” She answered tiredly, “He should’ve attacked by now. Surely he and the Guardian are planning something, perhaps even gathering more allies.”

 

“We learned yesterday that those other three are as inept as their leather-clad companion.” Gabriel argued, “I am confident that with Volpina’s help, the four of them will still not be an issue.”

 

“I hope you’re right, Gabriel.” Nathalie sighed, surprisingly choosing to use his first name.

 

After a brief moment of reflection by both of them, Gabriel called upon Nooroo’s power to transform him. The kwami had been sitting on the desk in front of the designer, simply staring at the Ladybug earrings, and yelped in surprise when summoned. Shortly thereafter, Hawkmoth stood in the office, radiating authority. 

 

But Nathalie arched an eyebrow when her boss’s composure collapsed, and his face began to resemble something like panic. 

 

“Volpina!” Hawkmoth cried out frantically, and turned to Nathalie, “I’ve lost contact with her!”

 

But a far greater concern caught Nathalie’s eye, and she gasped as she saw a blackness spreading across the floor like a virus, turning everything it touches into ash...

 

**********

*Several minutes prior*

 

“Surprised you haven’t rushed in yet.” Chloe remarked, finally catching up to Chat Noir.

 

The two of them stood on a rooftop overlooking the Agreste Mansion. The building was still on full lockdown, all of the doors and windows completely sealed. Adrien now knew why, and had to suppress a growl. The realization that Ladybug’s capture had been because she was helping  _ him _ hurt a lot. If she hadn’t taken care of of him after the akuma last night, she would be perfectly safe at home right now.

 

“I’d be captured by now.” Adrien answered grimly, turning to face his old friend, “Surprised you’re still with me after my little episode.”

 

“Are you kidding?” Chloe snorted, “I think  _ I’ve _ proven more than once that it takes more than just a tantrum to drive us apart.”

 

“Do you think I went too far?” Adrien asked honestly, “I meant most of what I said, but…”

 

“Maybe.” She simply shrugged in response, “I wouldn’t know. But what I  _ do  _ know is that it’s  _ about time _ you started to stick up for yourself.”

 

“Not at him, though.” The boy sighed in response, “The only person who deserves my wrath right now is in there.” He gestured at the mansion.

 

“Yeah, about that…” Chloe began, “Got any ideas yet?”

 

Unfortunately, thinking of plans wasn’t Adrien’s strong suit. Part of what made Chat Noir and Ladybug such great partners was that he let  _ her  _ think of the plans, that he followed without question. His unwavering trust in her had given them countless victories, but today was going to have to be a little bit different…

 

“The beginnings of one.” Chat Noir admitted, “If you can use your power on my father, we can swipe his Miraculous without a problem.”

 

“I’m with you.” Chloe nodded, “...But what about the security system? And the other two?”

 

“Exactly.” Adrien agreed, “And not only that, but I have to rescue Ladybug somehow in all of this. We can’t do that if we’re busy fighting Mayura and Volpina.” Both of the blondes frowned, deep in thought.

 

“Her earrings!” Chloe exclaimed suddenly, “Your father must have them somewhere in there-”

 

“-The safe!” Adrien realized, remembering where Gabriel had concealed the Miraculous spellbook, “And if we can get our hands on those-”

 

“-We’ll have Ladybug’s help!” Chloe finished, and they both allowed themselves a smile at that.

 

We still haven’t figured out the security system though.” The girl realized grimly.

 

Both of the teens paused in thought yet again. The mansion was built like a fortress, virtually indestructible. Chat Noir had only one tool that could get them through it, but Adrien wasn’t sure if he was ready to destroy the only home he’d ever known. The place was cold, far too large, but it was all he had. 

 

Adrien’s brow furrowed, as he remembered that everything in there was material in the end.  _ Things  _ could be replaced, but people like his lady?

 

“I could use my power.” Adrien whispered, “Destroy the whole building.”

 

“Excuse me?” Chloe blinked, “Wouldn’t that kill  _ everybody _ inside?”

 

“Well, no…” Adrien explained, “I can control what my power does and doesn’t destroy, to a certain extent. If I focus, all the people will be safe, along with the contents of his safe and some of the furniture.”

 

“I mean…” The girl considered, “Are you  _ sure _ you want to destroy your family home?”

 

“No.” He admitted, “And I don’t want to consider our chances of success after we’re both on the clock, but I bet we can save Ladybug and her earrings before we rush out.”

 

“Especially if Hawkmoth is immobilized.” Chloe said thoughtfully, “Okay, Adrikins, if you really think that’s our best option.”

 

“Yeah…” Adrien nodded, “Besides, once we get the earrings back, we can fix it anyways. And it’s  _ Chat Noir  _ while we’re suited up!”

 

Adrien then explained to Chloe that Gabriel was probably still in his office, and pointed out exactly where that was in the building. Moments later, Queen Bee activated her power,  _ Venom _ , putting them on the clock immediately. Adrien took a deep breath, realizing that now was the moment to do or die.

  
“ _ Cataclysm! _ ” Chat shouted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't happy with the order of my three scenes here. I couldn't decide whether to start or end with the Adrien & Chloe scene, but I ultimately had to make a decision, so here we are.
> 
> Also, don't worry. I'm not shipping Adrien / Chloe, I just really like their friendship.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader begin their epic lightsaber duel.
> 
> Just a short chapter today, but it's action packed.

Swallowing his attachments to the building before him, Chat Noir jumped straight for it, vaulting the fence, and jamming his palm right onto the front door with an angry shout, watching in horrified fascination as the dark power spread across the entire building, engulfing it all in one gigantic attack. Ornate designs and old family photos were swallowed up. Security systems triggered immediately in warning, but were too slow, having already been swallowed by the ultimate power of destruction.

 

After quickly sharing a saddened look with Queen Bee, and taking a deep breath, both heroes jumped straight through the crumbling wall of Gabriel’s office.

 

**********

 

“Nathalie!” Hawkmoth shouted, but the dust from the cataclysm was still falling from the upper floors, almost completely obstructing his vision. A feeling of panic was quickly overwhelming him when he heard no response, but was immediately quelled when he saw a flash of blue light through the dust, confirming her transformation.

 

The sound of running footsteps behind him was his only warning of an incoming attack. Hawkmoth sidestepped just in time to avoid Queen Bee’s stinger stabbing at him blindly. Unfortunately, his dodge placed him straight in the path of her companion.

 

“Where’s  _ Ladybug? _ ” Chat Noir snarled, kicking Hawkmoth in the chest and knocking him backwards.

 

Quickly recovering, Hawkmoth unsheathed his blade and slashed at Chat’s neck. The hero managed to parry the blow with his baton, causing sparks to fly when the two pieces of magical metal clashed.

 

The dust was finally beginning to settle, and Gabriel growled in frustration when he looked up to see the massive swarm of butterflies in his attic flying away in every direction. Despite their loyalty to him, they seemed eager to go find a new home. Hopefully he wouldn’t need them anymore, but it was still one less tool for him to work with.

 

Gabriel’s attention was immediately drawn away from the butterflies when he saw the look of pure  _ hate _ in Chat Noir’s eyes, frightening the supervillain more than he would have expected, causing him to freeze momentarily.

 

It was this distraction that gave Queen Bee the necessary opening to jab at him again with her stinger. Hawkmoth turned just in time to see the attack incoming, but realized that it was far too late for him to dodge…

 

Only for Mayura to jump in the path of the attack with a panicked scream. The stinger struck her dark blue costume, and immediately caused her to freeze in place, completely immobilized.

 

“No!” Gabriel cried out, stepping forwards and kicking Queen Bee before she could capitalize on her opening.

 

A harsh blow struck the side of his head, immediately knocking him over. It took him a moment to process that Chat Noir had just  _ extended _ the baton straight into his skull. As he made eye contact with the boy, he was surprised to see a look of hurt confusion in his eyes, as he looked between Hawkmoth and the now-paralyzed figure of Mayura. And even more shocking, he saw… tears? The boy was struggling not to cry…

 

**********

 

Adrien’s whole world was shattering. First, his father was brutally attacking Chloe, who he  _ knew  _ was Queen Bee. Then, Hawkmoth had injured his own son, albeit unknowingly. It was the same as yesterday, but now that Adrien knew… it was becoming more than he could bear. 

 

And as if that wasn’t enough, Nathalie had jumped in the way of the stinger, taking the hit for Gabriel, which opened a can of worms that scared Adrien more than an akum ever could. He’d gotten a look at her eyes, and could tell that woman was protecting Gabriel in the same way he protected Ladybug, or Rena Rouge protected Carapace. And then the way that Father had reacted… he’d cried out in horror at his assistant being hit.

 

It made Adrien want to go break something. His father and Nathalie… there was something going on there, wasn’t there?

 

Something had snapped in Chat Noir after that. He’d begun to cry, but the realization that Gabriel had moved on from his mother without even telling him, while she could  _ still _ be out there, unleashed a fury that far exceeded the initial discovery that his father was Hawkmoth. How could Gabriel betray him like that? How could he betray  _ her? _   
  


“Did  _ she _ mean nothing to you!?” Chat leaped at him with a feral rage, tackling Hawkmoth to the ground, and clawing at his Miraculous. 

 

“ _ She _ ?” Hawkmoth demanded, as he resisted the attack, but the boy offered him nothing in response, simply continuing his onslaught.

 

With a grunt, Hawkmoth managed to throw the hero off of him, and pick his rapier back up. Queen Bee tried another attack, lobbing her spinning top at him, but he managed to deflect it with little difficulty. He looked around, anticipating other heroes to join the duo, and almost laughed at the empty scene surrounding them.

 

“Foolish children!” Hawkmoth exclaimed when he realized that his opponents were alone. Not only alone, but on the verge of transforming back, both of them having used their powers. Losing Mayura and Volpina meant that he had less firepower… but Hawkmoth had proven his prowess in battle just yesterday.

 

“You’re outnumbered!” Chloe called out, rushing him yet again. Gabriel managed to sidestep, and smack the hilt of his sword against the back of her skull, causing her to immediately fall to her knees. She tried to rise again, but a quick swipe of his blade separated the Bee Miraculous and a small chunk of her hair from the rest of the girl’s head.

 

“No!” Adrien screamed in fear, realizing that he’d lost his only remaining ally.

 

Immediately, the transformation dropped, revealing the already-known identity of Queen Bee to be his goddaughter, Chloe Bourgeois. Gabriel reached with his free hand, catching the Miraculous before it even hit the ground.

 

“Outnumbered?” Gabriel sneered at her, while examining the precious accessory.

 

“ _ Leave her alone _ !” Chat Noir screamed, standing up again and swinging his baton wildly. Hawkmoth was able to counter the boy’s sloppy attacks with ease, but the hero just  _ kept coming _ . Blow after blow rained down on the villain’s defences, and although the his opponent found himself smirking at first,  repeated hits were quickly tiring him out, leaving a scowl as Hawkmoth realized that he  _ could  _ still lose this.

 

The two clashed again, and Adrien noticed Chloe moving out of the corner of his eye, slipping towards the rear of his office.

 

Gabriel grimaced in pain after Adrien managed to slip a baton hit right through his father’s defences, and striking his chin (probably leaving a nasty bruise). Gabriel dropped the Bee Miraculous, but neither fighter had any interest in it.

 

From years of observing his akuma fight Chat Noir, and from his own firsthand experience yesterday, Gabriel knew that the boy was skilled with his baton, fully capable of using it as a makeshift sword despite it’s blunt shape and greater size. And even though he’d overwhelmed the hero yesterday, the boy’s adrenaline seemed to be giving him an edge...

 

But disciplined poise would ultimately win out. Hawkmoth was able to slash at the boy’s chest twice. Chat Noir cried out in agony, blood spewing from the open wounds, but didn’t relent at all, redoubling his attacks. He could take the punishment. After all, he’d stabbed  _ Ladybug _ just last night, and she’d handled it.

 

“Just give me the ring!” Hawkmoth called out, “Hand it over, and this all ends!”

 

“Just  _ stop _ !” Chat screamed back, making another strike at the Butterfly Miraculous, as tears fell freely from his eyes.

 

Finally, Chat overcommitted to an attack, leaving him open for punishment, and Gabriel was able to sweep the boy’s legs out from under him. Chat Noir’s baton slipped out of his grip, and Hawkmoth was clearly struggling to contain his own enthusiasm as he snagged Chat’s arm. Chat resisted, but his father’s grip was ironclad. as he grabbed at the Miraculous on his finger...

 

“Time’s up, Uncle Gabe!” Chloe’s voice called out, and both fighters turned to see the blonde diva pinning on the Ladybug earrings. A red kwami was now floating next to her, regarding Hawkmoth with a cool expression.

 

“No!” Gabriel cried, his eyes widening in horror.

 

**********

 

“Spots-” Chloe began, but was interrupted when another figure burst through the mound of dust that used to be the wall of Gabriel’s office.

 

“Drop them!” Lila, no longer Volpina, tackled the blonde girl, momentarily preventing Chloe from transforming.

 

The two began brawling, Lila’s eyes filled with fury untold as she quite literally tried to murder her opponent. Chloe, to her credit, was managing to hold her own at the moment, but she was quickly being overwhelmed.

 

“Chloe!” Both Chat Noir and another voice called out in unison.

 

For at that moment, none other than Marinette Dupain-Cheng followed Lila, bursting through the ashes of the mansion as well. She looked dazed, and the skin on her neck was irritated, as if somebody had tried to strangle her. Gabriel looked back at Chat Noir, who had managed to slip away from his grip in the confusion, but the hero was staring wide-eyed at the dark-haired newcomer, as if he didn’t understand…

 

A scream interrupted the designer’s thoughts, as both Lila and Chloe seemed to just vanish into the ash on which they brawled. Hawkmoth was momentarily confused, when he suddenly realized just  _ what _ they had stumbled into.

 

“Emilie!” Hawkmoth dove after them, into the elevator shaft, and into the sanctuary below, forgetting Chat Noir and Marinette for the moment.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bad News: This is the end of what I'd written ahead of time, meaning that the rest of the chapters are going to be released as I finish writing them. Hopefully Monday? Maybe sooner. I have an outline, so don't worry, I'm not just winging it.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloe struggles to defeat her enemies, while Marinette and Adrien do the same.

Wherever she and Lila had fallen, it was _deep_ . Chloe’s whole body exploded in agony upon impact, and she was reasonably certain that she had broken some bones. Darkness engulfed the scene, with very minimal lighting on the walls. The room was _vast_ , and she could see some kind of rectangular box surrounded by what seemed to be a garden across a gigantic bridge.

 

While falling, that bitch Lila had managed to hold her underneath, making Chloe endure the brunt of the impact, while Lila climbed back to her feet, relatively unscathed. Chloe tried to roll back to her feet as well, but her body didn’t respond.

 

“W-What?” Chloe tried moving again, but to no avail. Panic spread like wildfire when she realized that she couldn’t feel pain below her waist. It wasn’t the lack of agony that bothered her however, it was the lack of any feeling, _at all._

 

“Chloe!” She heard the voice of Ladybug’s kwami from right next to her, “Are you okay?” Gasping as she looked at Chloe’s lower body, “You have to transform!”

 

“I-I can’t…” Chloe’s heart was racing, and she was sweating in spite of the room’s relatively low temperature. Her upper body began shaking uncontrollably, and she couldn’t tear her eyes off of her legs, that looked horribly mangled. Chloe was often proud of maintaining her bravery, even in spite of life-and-death situations, but this… this was not okay. Chloe’s mind was racing, and she wasn’t able to think straight at all.

 

 _I’m dying_ . Chloe thought to herself, in a brief moment of clarity, unable to stop convulsing, _This is the end._

 

“I’ll take those!” Lila’s voice cried triumphantly, tearing the earrings right out of the blonde girl’s ears, and claiming them for herself. Chloe weakly reached after her, but was unable to do anything at all.

 

“Spots on!” She shouted, positively gleeful, and a burst of red light confirmed an absolutely horrible event.

 

Whereas the _real_ Ladybug simply used a red-and-black polka dotted bodysuit, Chloe was briefly taken aback by just how _stylish_ Lila looked in the spots. Everything about Lila was flashy, from the extra padding all over, to the additional accents of black on the insides of her legs. Overdone and _utterly ridiculous_ , it suited the pathological liar perfectly.

 

“Oh, _Chloe_ …” Lila put on a facade of sympathy, “It seems you’ve fallen, and aren’t getting up.”

 

“J-Just shut up!” Chloe managed, still overwhelmed by the panic. There was no way in _hell_ she was going to let Lila get away with this.

 

“Here…” Lila’s voice was dripping with contempt now, as she drew the familiar red yoyo, approaching Chloe. “Let me help you…”

 

“ENOUGH!” The voice of Gabriel Agreste exclaimed, and a sound behind her confirmed that Hawkmoth had landed behind them, the Miraculous having protected him from the fall.

 

**********

 

 _I’ve gone too far…_ This was the only thought Gabriel could manage as he stared at the mangled body of his goddaughter.

 

When Mayor Bourgeois had asked him and Emilie to take on that role in Chloe’s life, Gabriel hadn’t been interested. After all, he harbored an intense disdain for the corrupt man leading the city, his wife’s friendship with Audrey Bourgeois was the only reason that he put up with the old fool. That, of course, and the necessary back scratching to help him build a competitive fashion brand in Paris.

 

But whether he took his responsibility as godfather seriously not, horror was the only emotion Gabriel felt as he saw the girl broken, both physically and emotionally. Lila stood over her triumphantly, now brandishing the Ladybug yoyo.

 

“Back off!” Hawkmoth yelled, and Lila simply glared at him, “We have the earrings, we don’t _need_ to hurt her.”

 

“Correction.” Lila sneered back at him, “ _I_ have the Ladybug earrings now.”

 

Gabriel blinked. The possibility of Lila working behind his back? He’d considered it. The thought that she might do things he opposed, like hurting Ladybug? He was certain she’d try it. But the idea that she might actually _betray_ him… He was caught off guard to say the least. Figuring that she could still be soothed, Gabriel decided that persuasion was still his best course of action.

 

“Remember our deal…” Gabriel reasoned, “I told you, superpowers for the Miraculous!”

 

Lila actually laughed at that, and Gabriel’s eyes widened as he realized _exactly_ what kind of person he had been using. Somebody that would work the system to get whatever she wanted, and then leave everybody else behind. So long as Lila humiliated Ladybug, and got her hands on some form of power, Gabriel could go die for all she cared.

 

“Oh, Gabe…” She snickered, “Really? _You_ actually trusted _me?”_

 

**********

 

“...Marinette…” Chat finally managed, after a long moment of staring at her. His face conveyed almost nothing but utter shock. Not necessarily in a bad way, but he definitely hadn’t anticipated this. His mouth hung open, and she noticed a distinct _pain_ in his eyes.

 

But Marinette didn’t have time to worry about that. She’d never wanted to demask in front of her partner, but she had no other options. Still dazed from hitting Adrien’s nightstand, she hadn’t been able to catch up with Lila in time to save Chloe, something she was still in the process of cursing herself over.

 

“We’ve got to go after them!” She exclaimed authoritatively, but her partner reached out, grabbing her arm before she could jump into the hole.

 

“Not without your powers.” Chat Noir said, seeming to regain his composure, “And especially not while you’re so injured.” He glanced at her neck.

 

She swelled in indignation at that. Ladybug and Chat Noir were a _team_ . He was _not_ about to bench her when Chloe needed them both down there. She might not be able to fight very well right now, but there was no way in _hell_ her partner was going down there without her. She leveled a glare straight at him that caused him to relax his grip, an apologetic look in his eyes as he took a step back.

 

“Look-” He held up his hands defensively as he tried to reason with her, but was interrupted.

 

For at that moment, Mayura tackled Chat Noir, the paralysis seeming to have worn off. Mayura attacked with a desperate urgency, going right after the ring on Chat’s right hand. A ring that was beeping again as she watched it…

 

He was going to run out of time, Marinette realized in horror. Currently weaponless, Chat was forced to use his hand-to-hand abilities to protect himself against the brutal onslaught. Mayura drew several sharp feathers from her fan, and slashed, striking Marinette’s kitty again and again, targeting the already open wounds on the boy’s chest. This prompted Chat to cry out in agony, as more blood splattered out, staining the ashy ground around him as he fell over.

 

Feeling sickened, Marinette fumbled around for something, _anything_ , that she could use to help him out. She’d lost the stapler and other items when the building was destroyed, but her partner’s baton was several feet away. Immediately, she rushed over to pick it up.

 

“Get off of him!” Marinette swung with all of her strength, hitting Mayura right in the back of the head. Barely flinching from the hit, Mayura spun around and grabbed Marinette by her shirt, lifting her off of the ground, and causing her to drop the baton.

 

“Don’t!” Chat Noir cried out, but his voice was deeply pained as he clutched his chest.

 

“You’ve interfered for the _last_ time.” Mayura ignored him, staring directly into Marinette’s eyes.

 

Marinette was terrified. Mayura fought with an unhinged anger that the young designer had encountered countless times in akuma, but there was something different about Nathalie as well. It was as if everything was more… calculated. Where Volpina or other akuma would simply lash out, Mayura used a lightning precision that suited her time as Mr. Agreste’s assistant perfectly.

 

Chat struggled to his feet, but Mayura quickly spun, kicking him back down with incredible accuracy, hitting his injuries yet again, drawing another scream from him.

 

 _This could be the end_. Marinette realized, and the world spun as Mayura flung her across the ruins of the office. Fortunately, the finely ground powder left by the cataclysm provided a soft landing, but Marinette was still disheartened to realize that they were on the verge of losing. Mayura was currently approaching the fallen kitty, while Hawkmoth and Lila would surely retrieve the earrings from Chloe at any time. Not to mention the fact that Chat was on the verge of transforming back...

 

Much to her surprise, however, something big and green flew across her vision, striking Mayura and knocking her over before bouncing straight back the way it came.

 

“Marinette!” An accented voice called out, and the raven-haired girl was shocked to recognize it as Master Fu.

 

She turned in shock to see the old man himself _sprinting,_ fully transformed in a thick green armor as he grabbed his shield out of the air and moved towards Mayura.

 

Mayura immediately rose back up, and rushed the Guardian, slashing with her fan, but Fu easily avoided the blow, years of practice clearly helping. The two battled back and forth, almost _dancing_. Fu was certainly slower than the young woman, but over a century’s worth of experience was clearly serving him well, as he expertly avoided most of her attacks.

 

“M’lady…” She felt Chat’s clawed hand on her shoulder, leaning on her. He had clearly seen better days, more and more blood dripping from his wounds, staining the black leather of his transformation. A glance at his Miraculous revealed that he had less than one minute remaining before he changed back, “The Bee…” He pointed several feet to her left.

 

 _Of course!_ Chloe hadn’t been transformed, meaning that she must have lost her Miraculous. Marinette quickly scooped it up, prompting the kwami, Pollen, to emerge from it, a terrified look in her eyes.

 

“Ladybug!” The kwami exclaimed, clearly relieved that it was her, and not Hawkmoth, “Am I glad to see-”

 

“No time!” Marinette cut her off, “I need to transform, can you handle another round?”

 

“I’ll need something to eat-” Pollen tried to answer, but Marinette had already stuck a macaron in her mouth before the striped being could finish. Fortunately, Hawkmoth hadn’t confiscated her food when she’d been captured. Marinette was about to glance at Chat, but a flash of green light confirmed that he too had released his transformation to charge his kwami. She quickly averted her eyes, not wanting to compromise his identity as well.

 

“It’s okay if you look, Bugaboo.” Chat’s voice called over quietly, “After all, I know you now, and Queen Bee learned my identity earlier.” He didn’t sound nearly as excited about these details as Marinette would’ve thought.

 

Another look to her left confirmed that Master Fu and Mayura were still battling, fortunately having stepped away from the detransformed Chat Noir. Fu was still going strong, and Mayura almost seemed to be slowing down, her barrage of attacks having definitely lessened as she favored a more precise approach.

 

“Later.” Marinette dismissed, “It doesn’t matter right now.”

 

“It’s you…” Her partner said softly, and she could hear wonder in his voice.

 

She _did_ want to know. Chat’s points were exactly right, and she felt a pang of annoyance when she realized that _Chloe_ had learned before she did. However, the last thing that Marinette needed right now was to get distracted. She’d be happy to talk to him face-to-face once they rescued Chloe and defeated Hawkmoth.

  
“Marinette?” Chat continued, “That boy you like… who is he?”

 

“Don’t worry about that.” She stiffened immediately, caught off guard by the question. After all, what did that matter right now?

 

“I-Is it… Luka?” He sounded so defeated, and she arched her eyebrows.

 

“You know Luka?” Unspoken: Did she know Chat Noir?

 

“Is it him?” A desperate note to his voice, and she sighed. Honestly, why was he talking about this right now, it wasn’t important.

 

“No, it’s not Luka.” She dismissed, and was about to shut down this entire conversation, when her continued again, an almost _hopeful_ edge to his voice.

 

“You kissed a boy on the cheek yesterday.” He began timidly, his voice tainted both from emotion and physical pain, “Blond, model, Hawkmoth’s son… is it him?”

 

Time seemed to stop, as her partner called out her crush. She felt herself internally freaking out, both from Chat mentioning Adrien, and from the realization that Chat was _very_ close to her if he knew about the kiss yesterday. There were a few dozen people at the picnic yesterday, only a few of them blond with green eyes… She stopped thinking about it, instead opting to simply answer the question.

 

“Yeah…” She admitted, “It’s him.”

 

Silence answered her, and she found herself panicking, as she contemplated the possibility that her partner might do something to hurt Adrien, _especially_ since his father was Hawkmoth. She cursed herself. Chat loved her, she knew that, and here she was, letting him know _exactly_ who his competition was. She was just begging for a jealous fight between her suitors.

 

“Buzz on!” Marinette called the moment Pollen finished, and felt the power of the Bee Miraculous sweep over her tired body, and she felt immediately invigorated. Her headache even cleared up a little bit, much to her relief. She quickly rushed to Chat, who also transformed in a flash of green light. Clearly still injured, Chat rose to his feet, a fire in his eyes, and a faint blush on his cheeks. Much to her shock, he was _beaming._

 

“Chat!” She exclaimed, and gestured at his chest, where the cuts on his costume had sealed, but the injury underneath was probably still present, “Are you okay-” But she was cut off when he nearly _jumped_ forward, embracing her.

 

“Let’s go help Fu.” Chat whispered, and released her.

 

A second later, he winked flirtatiously as he looked her up and down, clearly taking in the new costume from the Bee Miraculous, “You look good in stripes, by the way.” Momentarily stunned, and blushing from the compliment, she followed him as soon as she regained her composure.

 

The battle was still raging between Fu and Mayura, neither seeming to claim the advantage. Mayura’s attacks had slowed, as she seemed to be trying to _think_ her way out of this one. Fu, for his part, was growing increasingly more defensive, sweat all over his face suggesting that he was tiring. He looked over at his approaching students, and immediately called out to them.

 

“Marinette, you and Chat Noir must go after Hawkmoth!” Fu exclaimed as he blocked another blow from his assailant, “He _cannot_ be allowed to escape with the Ladybug Miraculous!”

 

“But you-” Chat tried to protest, a worried note to his voice, and the old master cut him off.

 

“I will be fine!” Fu declared, slamming his shield against his opponent’s face, sending her flying backwards, “You must hurry!”

 

The two heroes shared a quick look, neither one eager to leave him behind. However, Marinette remembered seeing Lila near her earrings, and quickly rushed for the hole, her partner right behind her.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I figured that Adrien deserved at least ONE happy moment.
> 
> We're in the final stretch now. I'll probably have this story finished within a week, so stay tuned!


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lila and Gabriel face off, and Adrien gets his life shattered... again.

She was _close._ Hawkmoth was skillful with his sword, and relentless on the attack, but Lila could feel herself wearing him down more and more each passing minute. Gradually, the man’s quick slashes with the rapier became mild swipes, and his occasional punches became few and far between. Lila’s inexperience with using a yoyo was quickly becoming a non factor, as each passing minute gave her more practice.

 

Lila hadn’t _really_ learned military tactics from an old Italian war hero, like she’d told Max one day, but she was still smart enough to know that keeping her distance in this fight was a smart idea, given that her weapon was a little bit more ranged.

 

She found herself almost laughing when she swept Hawkmoth’s feet out from under him. How could a supervillain be this _sloppy?_ The man was more than twice her size, but his prowess in battle was certainly leaving a lot to be desired.

 

“What’s the matter?” She taunted, as Hawkmoth struggled to deflect another yoyo throw while climbing back to his feet, “Starting to feel your age a bit?” She spun the yoyo again, swinging it like a whip towards her opponent.

 

“Not quite.” He remarked dryly, snapping a hand up just in time to catch the projectile, “Just entertained that you thought you had a chance of winning.” Lila’s eyes widened, as Hawkmoth yanked on her weapon with all his strength, flinging Lila over his shoulder and across the chamber. She silently cursed herself, realizing that she’d underestimated her opponent. If she was going to finish Marinette off, she needed to finish this fight quickly.

 

And just like that, Gabriel Agreste cut loose. His attacks seemed to double in speed, and he was on her again before she could even get back up. Slash after slash pursued her as she struggled to regain some traction, but she couldn’t seem to hold her footing at all. He threw his free hand out, and almost managed to snatch an earring off of her in all the chaos.

 

Desperate to escape, Lila jumped as high as she could, nearing the roof of the chamber, and threw her yoyo up into the rafters, swinging towards a platform in the middle of the room, where flowers adjourned what looked to be… a coffin?

 

“Stay away from there!” And Lila was pleasantly surprised to hear no small amount of fear in her opponent’s voice. He was sprinting across the bridge, but Hawkmoth didn’t have near the same mobility that the Ladybug earrings afforded her.

 

She had a brief moment before he arrived, so she quickly approached the box, curiously peering inside to see exactly _what_ Hawkmoth might be so worried about her getting her hands on. And much to her surprise, she was greeted by the sleeping face of a beautiful blonde woman, grasping flowers in her hands.

 

“Don’t _touch_ her-” Hawkmoth tried to grab Lila, but she heard his approach, and sidestepped in time. She tossed the yoyo forwards, snagging onto Gabriel’s ankle. With a quick pull, the supervillain was sprawled on the surprisingly well kept grass of the chamber.

 

“Your wife.” Lila remarked, and it wasn’t a question. She reasoned that something _must_ be wrong with her, and saving Emilie Agreste must’ve been Gabriel’s hidden motive. Gabriel turned and glared at her, and she began wondering just how defeating Ladybug and Chat Noir would accomplish that goal.

 

“My _everything.”_ Gabriel snarled, standing between the Italian girl and the coffin, “You will leave _her_ out of this.”

 

“Is she even alive in there?” She asked, meaning it as a taunt, but coming off as more of a curious inquiry.

 

Instead of answering, Hawkmoth simply lunged, taking another swing at her, but Lila managed to duck underneath the blow and slip behind her opponent. A glance at the coffin’s back side revealed several wires plugged in, almost certainly maintaining some kind of life support system, answering her last question.

 

“I’d put that down.” Lila told Hawkmoth, as the man was about to attack again, “Unless you won’t dearest Emilie’s sleep to become a little bit more… _permanent.”_ At that last word, Lila placed a hand on the power strip, and Hawkmoth’s eyes widened in horror.

 

“ _Stop!”_ Chat Noir called, and Lila swore as she looked over to see the troublesome feline and who appeared to be… Queen Bee? Only this Queen Bee was a touch shorter, with much darker hair. Not to mention, this Bee was holding Chloe in her arms protectively. Lila tensed as she realized what she was up against.

 

“ _Marinette.”_ Lila spat, and former Ladybug glared right back at her.

 

**********

 

Confused was too small of a word to describe how Adrien felt now.

 

Throughout the last two days, he felt like he’d gone through the whole spectrum of human emotion at least three times. Between fighting an army of akumatized villains, getting akumatized himself, and learning that his _father_ was the man responsible for all of it… Adrien hadn’t expected for things to get any more complicated.

 

And yet here they were…

 

Adrien had been _furious_ when he saw his father and Nathalie together. Every minute he’d spent in both of their company was now under _intense_ scrutiny as he wondered when it had started, even more than when he learned they were supervillains. Were Gabriel’s sins the actions of a lonely widower desperate for love in his life? Or had this been going on since before his mother vanished? The mere possibility of the second option had Adrien seeing red, and wanting nothing more than to punch his father in the face.

 

And he had. Chat Noir had cut loose after that, unleashing an animal within him that he wasn’t comfortable knowing existed. He’d desperately attacked his father, raining blow after blow on him, but to little avail. He could feel himself falling into blind hatred, the natural result of all the confusion and stress he’d been under.

 

And then there was Marinette…

 

Finally, some news that was truly, indisputably, _good._ Even though he couldn’t honestly say he loved Marinette as a civilian, there was virtually nobody he respected more. She was always so kind to him, and to everybody in their class. She was the first friend he made at school (after Nino), and the realization that it was Ladybug he’d given his umbrella to on that rainy afternoon… Adrien felt a deep _happiness_ beyond what he’d had since before his mother had left him.

 

And that was before learning that she loved _him._ She may not have accepted Chat Noir’s feelings, but apparently she’d been pursuing _Adrien_ the entire time. Never knowing that before today saddened him, but it didn’t matter anymore. Despite everything that had happened, the time had come for him and his lady to finish this, once and for all. Suddenly, it didn’t matter anymore that Hawkmoth was his father. It didn’t matter that his whole house had been completely decimated. Because now, Adrien finally had something to _live for_ once this was over with. No matter what was down in his father’s lair, they would be prepared for it!

 

Or so he thought…

 

Because Adrien could feel the emotion inside him welling up uncontrollably again when he recognized a beautiful blonde woman inside the coffin to be his _mother._ This was ignoring the fact that Lila had claimed Ladybug’s earrings, and that Chloe was unconscious in Marinette’s arms, possibly paralyzed.

 

“ _Marinette.”_ Lila spat, glaring at his lady in pure hatred, but Chat found himself unable to focus, instead staring at his father.

 

“You _knew!”_ Adrien screamed, catching Lila, Gabriel, and Marinette all by surprise by the raw _emotion_ in his voice, “All along, ever since she vanished, she’s been _here,_ hasn’t she!?” He barely paused to catch his breath, “All along, it was a _lie!”_

 

“What the hell are you talking about?” Hawkmoth glared at him.

 

“How do you know she’s even _alive?”_ Chat demanded, ignoring the villain’s remark, “Or is this just a shrine for a lonely old man who can’t _forget the past?_ ”

 

“Enough!” Hawkmoth snapped, balling his hand into a fist and gaining a hateful look in his eyes, “You will not disrespect her when you know nothing of what I’ve lost, or what my _family,_ has lost! You know nothing of what I’ve _done_ for my family!”

 

“You’re pathetic! _”_ Adrien screamed back, physically shaking now, “I know that every night, for _years_ now, you’ve tortured your son by telling him _nothing_ about his mother!” Tears began to flow from his eyes, prompting Ladybug to put a totally confused but completely supportive hand on his shoulder, “You’ve let me fall asleep in this huge, _empty_ house every night with the cold realization that I didn’t _just_ lose her that day, I lost _you_ , too!” He extended his baton, readying himself for battle, “So you can take your _‘What I’ve done for my family,’_ bullshit and shove it up your ass!”

 

Gabriel’s eyes widened, and Marinette audibly gasped, as Adrien’s use of the word “I” didn’t go unnoticed by anybody. Even Lila arched an eyebrow, seeming to forget her threat regarding Emilie Agreste but Chat didn’t care in that moment.

 

All he cared about was the growing look of utter shock and _horror_ blooming on the usually stoic face of Gabriel Agreste. He hadn’t meant to reveal his identity like that, but the realization that for once in his life, he had actually managed to leave Gabriel speechless was… cathartic, to say the least. The man looked _broken_ , and Adrien couldn’t help but feel the faintest twinge of guilt, until he remembered that his father had subjected him to something far worse.

 

“Adrien…” Marinette broke the silence first, her jaw hanging, and when he turned to face her, he was stunned by the sudden force of her jumping against him, pulling him into the warmest embrace of his life. Tears flowed freely from both of them, and he could hear his lady sobbing on his behalf, before she gathered the composure to ask, “Is it… Is it really you?”

 

“Always.” Adrien whispered back, and nothing else mattered in that moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoops... somebody must've bumped the chapter count from 17 to 18. Guess I'll have to write another one now.
> 
> In all seriousness, I realized that my conclusion is going to take more than just Chapter 17, so I broke it up into 2 chapters. Sorry to keep you guys waiting again.
> 
> As always, comments and criticism are completely welcome, so have at it! You guys have been great, and I look forward to seeing what you think of the ending.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> People realize the mistakes they've made.

The battle had raged for what felt like an eternity now, and Nathalie was growing more and more frustrated by her lack of results.

 

Everytime Nathalie thought she had claimed the upper hand, the Guardian managed to slip out of her attack. Short in stature, and clearly quite elderly, she wouldn’t have taken him for much of a threat, but the fact that they were both still standing proved that she still had a lot to learn about the Miraculous and their power. Nathalie wasn’t yet thirty, and kept herself in decent shape, but her opponent’s raw skill seemed to give him an edge.

 

“So why is it...” The Turtle audibly pondered as he deflected another blow, “...that Gabriel Agreste’s assistant aides him not only in his business endeavors, but also in his efforts to gain absolute power?”

 

“He has a goal.” Mayura grunted as she tried to maneuver around the gigantic green shield, but to no avail, “-one that means a great deal to both of us.”

 

“And what might that be?” Her opponent demanded, as he slammed his shield into Nathalie’s right wrist, prompting her to cry out as she dropped the fan, “What could be so important, that the lives of so many people are irrelevant? What could a man who has  _ everything _ want to the point that he will control the minds of children to achieve his goal?”

 

Rather than respond, Nathalie leaped above her foe, kicking at his face, but the old man was ironically fast for a turtle. He easily sidestepped, leaving her off balance. Before she could hit the ground again, the Guardian reached forward, and grabbed her ankle. The whole world spun as she went flying into a mound of dust that used to be her boss’s desk. Fortunately it made for a soft landing, and she was back on her feet within a second.

 

Still without a weapon, Nathalie tried to punch the old man, but he raised his hand, catching the fist. She pulled back, trying to knock him off balance, but he simply spun her around again, slamming her on the ground before him.

 

“Duusu’s power will not be abused like Nooroo’s.” The man said softly, and snatched the Peacock pin off her chest with lightning speed.

 

Before Nathalie could even begin to process the feelings of failure, her entire body seemed to convulse as the Peacock’s hold over her only grew. What the transformation had originally guarded her against was now fully unleashed on her. She began to cough uncontrollably, with blood erupting from her mouth at an alarming rate. Her eyes widened in panic, and she struggled to cough now that her windpipe was seeming to be constricted, leaving excess blood in her throat… She was choking now, and she felt more physically weak than ever before. She had now used the Peacock  _ three times, _ whereas Emilie had only used it twice. Nathalie’s entire life seemed to flash before her eyes and a strange calm swept over her, as she realized that this could so easily be the end...

 

...Until a glowing light seemed to completely engulf her vision. A warm feeling began in her chest, and quickly spread to the rest of her, seeming to drive out the sickness as though it had never been there.

 

Moments later, Nathalie was still gasping for breath, but the pain was completely gone. She was on her hands and knees, and the hand of the Guardian was resting on her shoulder, a very concerned look in his eyes.

 

“Are you alright?” He asked softly, and she could only nod at the moment. He held the Peacock in his other hand, and he squinted at it quizzically, “This Miraculous… did it do this to you?”

 

“Y-Yes.” Nathalie rasped, surprised by her own stutter, “The Peacock… it’s damaged.”

 

“Not damaged.” The Guardian shook his head grimly, “Try  _ cursed.” _ He fiddled with it a little bit more, a very troubled look in his eyes, “Clearly intended to punish whoever inherited it.”

 

The situation was oddly surreal. Where she would’ve expected a harsh condemnation, or perhaps being knocked out and dragged to the police station, the Guardian’s expression was one of kind concern, drawing a sad feeling out of the assistant. She’d known that she and Gabriel were the ‘villains,’ in some sense, but to see just how much her apparent enemy was seeking to help… It was uncomfortable, to say the least.

 

“Wait.” Nathalie frowned, feeling a mixture of horror and hope as she realized what the Guardian  _ may _ have just done, “Did you… Am I… Am I healed?”

 

“You should be.” The old man nodded, still looking at the Miraculous, “The curse was incredibly painful, but the spell to break it is quite simple.” He looked down at her, a more stern look taking over his features, “Now, will you tell me what it is that has led Gabriel Agreste to pursue absolute power?”

 

She couldn’t answer, for a long time, as her jaw hung open. She’d heard the man’s words, but was powerless to respond to them.

 

She was healed? Just like that? No complications, no need to steal the Miraculous of Ladybug and Chat Noir? All along, all she and Gabriel had needed to do was find the Guardian, and Emilie would’ve been saved. What had been hope at the realization that Emilie might be on the verge of salvation was immediately replaced by horror as she considered just how many  _ people _ had suffered at Hawkmoth’s hands. Not to further an ultimately noble goal, but needlessly. Everything Gabriel had done… it had been for nothing.

 

The Guardian was still staring at her, waiting for an answer.

 

“It’s his wife.” She managed, tears flowing freely from the cold hearted woman. Her mind, in its eternal cruelty, was showing her how she had mercilessly struck at Chat Noir’s injury, and she couldn’t help but stare at where some of the hero’s blood still stained the ashy ruines, “She…she was infected by the Peacock’s curse, and Gabriel thought -he thought the only way to save her was the earrings and ring…”

 

“All of this suffering…” The man gasped, “For what I could’ve healed in ten seconds?”

 

All Nathalie could do was nod in response.

 

**********

 

“This… is good.” Adrien and Marinette’s warm embrace was interrupted by the voice of Gabriel, cutting in timidly.

 

Marinette regarded her once-idol with a cool expression, now aware of just how much the man had harmed his own son. Gabriel’s face looked downright haunted as he spoke. All of the times that Chat had been injured or even killed by akuma were almost certainly playing back in the man’s mind, and he was most definitely seeking some kind of justification.

 

“Adrien!” Gabriel exclaimed suddenly, “Your mother, she isn’t dead!” Hawkmoth was still shaken, but excitement had found its way into his eyes, “With your ring, and the earrings that Volpina has… we can heal her!”

 

Lila looked unamused by the suggestion, but Marinette only spared her a quick glance. All the rest of her attention was reserved for her school crush and super-partner, as his brilliant green eyes filled with an inner turmoil that the raven-haired girl had never seen. Adrien looked at the coffin, then at this father, and then finally at the ring on his hand. There was still rage in the boy’s eyes, but also a deep longing. After all, it had been two years now since he’d lost his mother, and the realization that he could get her back… was clearly tempting beyond all measure. It made Marinette’s obligation painful, but it had to be done.

 

“Whatever wish you make…” Marinette announced, directing her words at both of the Agreste men, “Somebody else will have to pay the price. Balance is maintained. If you bring back your wife, somebody else will lose their spouse.”

 

Chat looked at her, a deep sadness written on his face. He could hear her words, and knew that forcing somebody else to bear the burden of loss wouldn’t be right. But whether Chat knew it was right or not wasn’t really important. What mattered was whether or not he would do it anyway.

 

And as uncomfortable as it made her, Marinette had to acknowledge that she had no idea what Adrien / Chat Noir would do. She didn’t know him well enough, something that was suddenly frustrating to her. Because while she had come to be Adrien’s friend in school, and had been Chat Noir’s partner for years now, neither of those relationships had been meaningful enough for her to say she  _ knew  _ him, or else she would have most likely figured him out. 

 

Her mind still struggled to process that the two boys were one and the same. It seemed like a blatant contradiction. Where Adrien Agreste was a thoughtful, reserved, and professional paragon of a boy, Chat Noir was impulsive and outgoing. The two had so little in common that she had to momentarily question whether or not Chat was lying to her. Perhaps it was some kind of ruse to fool Hawkmoth, or to win her over? That thought made her sick.

 

But then again, as Marinette looked again at the melancholy in her partner’s eyes, she couldn’t help but be reminded of her crush. She thought back to all the times one of his selves had manifested in the other. Adrien had punned after the battle with Darkblade. Chat Noir had been personally offended the first time Marinette thought she accused Gabriel Agreste. The times an akuma attacked Adrien  _ perfectly _ coincided with the times that Chat Noir had been late or completely absent.

 

Marinette openly gasped, as the last piece of the puzzle fit into place. She had just discovered earlier today that Adrien had a crush on Ladybug. Not only that, but Adrien’s shame about getting akumatized made total sense when considering his alter ego. Marinette felt ashamed to realized that she had questioned him.

 

“It doesn’t matter.” Gabriel shook his head, “The good involved with bringing Emilie back… it’s worth any price!”

 

“Father… why didn’t you move on?” Chat asked softly, the anger seeming to fade from his voice, “I know she’s still alive, but look at all of the suffering you’ve caused-” Adrien shook his head, wiping a tear from his eyes and assuming a combative stance, “It’s not worth it. It’s not right, either, and I won’t let you!” He twirled his baton, glaring straight back at his father’s now even more stunned expression, while Marinette’s eyes widened with tears of pride.

 

Her kitty was doing the right thing. Even though he was on the verge of getting his family back together, he was going to give it up for the greater good. In that moment, any doubts she may have been having about her feelings for this boy vanished. She knew that there was a reason she loved him so much! When it came to it, the needs of others came before his own.

 

Marinette spun her spinning top as well, giving her partner a warm smile as they prepared to face their greatest enemy.

 

“...Then you leave me no choice.” Gabriel whispered a moment later, before his eyes lit up with determination yet again. Marinette squinted, and was not surprised to see the father wiping a tear from his eye as well, “If you will not act to save this family, then I will!” He drew his rapier yet again, defiantly looking between Lila, Adrien, and Marinette. But just as he was about to strike at his foes, he was interrupted.

 

“Gabriel, wait!” A familiar voice yelled.

 

All eyes turned towards the entrance of the lair, where Nathalie stood before them, accompanied by the still transformed Master Fu. She was no longer Mayura, and looked absolutely horrified at the scene unfolding before her. 

 

“Nathalie?” The man looked conflicted, “What’s going on?”

 

“We don’t need them!” She yelled, shame evident in her tone, “The Miraculous… The Guardian can save her without Ladybug and Chat Noir.”

 

Gabriel’s jaw dropped, and Marinette could sense Adrien stir right next to her. Her gut reaction was joy at realizing that Adrien could still have his Mother after this, but Marinette couldn’t help the feeling disgust welling inside of her as well. Suffering beyond measure, for over a year now, over something that Master Fu could’ve handled right away? After all, just look at what it had done to the man’s son!

 

“W-what?” Gabriel gaped, and there was a rare stutter to his voice. He clenched his rapier, and looked like a deer caught in headlights.

 

“If the curse of the peacock is her only ailment, then a simple spell will break it!” Fu exclaimed, desperate to defuse the situation, “So long as she is still alive, we can save her!”

**********

 

“...Then you still need me.” All heads turned back to Lila, who once again grasped at the plug on Emilie’s life support like it was her own. The Italian girl looked between her enemies, desperate to control her own rising fear.

 

Would she really kill Emilie Agreste? Lila didn’t really know… Doing horrible things to her enemies like Ladybug, or rotten people like Gabriel or Chloe was one thing, but could she really harm somebody she hadn’t even met?

 

She didn’t have many other options though. She was dramatically outnumbered now. If Gabriel lowered his sword, that left that this ‘Guardian’ to take her down, alongside Marinette and…  _ Adrien _ . That one was surprising to her, and almost annoying. Whereas Ladybug being Marinette almost seemed to fill in the gaps (after all, why was Marinette trying to disprove everything she said all the time), Adrien being Chat Noir seemed to create far more questions than answers.

 

Questions she didn’t have time for. What she needed was to trade Emilie Agreste’s life for her own escape. Gabriel, Nathalie, and Adrien would almost certainly approve, but Marinette and the Guardian would likely pursue her. Needless to say, Lila would need to piece together some more details later, but as long as she had a Miraculous, she could probably avoid the authorities for the time being.

 

“Step away from her.” Lila was surprised to see the Guardian step forward, a fierce determination in his eyes.

 

“Or what?” Lila demanded, “You’ll bring her back from the dead? You just told me you can’t do that.” She snickered, “And if she dies, you’ll have to fight him again.” The Italian girl pointed back at Hawkmoth, who seemed paralyzed with fear.

 

_ “Or you will know a fate far worse than death.” _ The old man’s eyes glowed red, and his voice took on a tone that made her heart start racing. While the man had initially appeared harmless, given his height and soft voice, Lila was shocked to realize that this Guardian had power beyond what he showed on the surface.

 

Lila was unable to look away, and it seemed as though there was nothing else in the room besides the two of them.

 

_ “I won’t ask again.” _ The Guardian took a cautious step forward, his eyes still filled with that unnatural color.

 

She began trembling, in spite of herself. A cold feeling inside seemed to be warning her that this was a man  _ very _ capable of carrying out his threats. Lila had never been more sure of one thing in her entire life: killing Emilie Agreste would be a mistake.

 

_ “Venom!” _ -was the last thing Lila heard before getting stabbed by a bright yellow stinger that instantly locked her in place.

 

Her last sight was the triumphant face of Marinette Dupain-Cheng, that had taken advantage of her momentary distraction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if that was at all anticlimactic?
> 
> Either way, should have one last closing chapter up in a few days, explaining where everybody ends up in the wake of all this. Thanks to everybody who's read this fic, and hope to see you again if I write another!


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An epilogue of sorts.

“Couldn’t help yourself, huh?” Adrien looked to see his girlfriend approaching, clearly annoyed but also unsurprised.

 

“Yeah… Guess not.” He replied nervously, and shifted uncomfortably. He didn’t make eye contact at first, not until Marinette reached out, grasping his hand in hers. This forced him to look straight at her, deep into those majestic blue eyes which held incredible sway over him.

 

“Hey.” She said softly, a benevolent note to her voice, “We’re going to get  _ through this.” _ She gestured at the massive building in front of them, “Even if we have to visit this place every month for the rest of his life, I’ll  _ be there.” _ She pressed a soft kiss to his lips.

 

The building was massive, with a vast array of security measures, from barbed wire fences to security cameras pointed in every conceivable direction. Armed guards stationed in towers around the perimeter gave the location a distinctly unwelcoming feeling. Adrien surmised that the prison wasn’t exactly meant to feel homely, but he was surprised at just how much he wanted to avoid this place.

 

But maybe it wasn’t the security he was afraid of. Maybe it was the person inside, a man that Adrien hadn’t seen in the three months since his arrest. That man of course being Adrien’s own father, Gabriel Agreste.

 

“I appreciate the offer, m’lady.” He whispered back after returning the kiss, “-but I think it’d be best if I handled this one myself.”

 

“If you think that’s best.” Marinette allowed, somewhat begrudgingly, “But I’ll be waiting in the lobby for you no matter what.”

 

“Thanks.” Adrien acknowledged with a soft chuckle, “I promise I won’t be long, there’s just… some things that need to be said.”

 

“...I take it your mother doesn’t know about this?” His girlfriend asked skeptically.

 

Adrien simply shook his head. His mother had been outraged to learn about everything that had unfolded, and would likely be divorcing his father soon. Now his legal guardian once more, Emilie had directly told Adrien  _ not _ to visit his father. The boy was reminded of his mother’s protective side almost instantly, and thanked every deity in existence that she hadn’t learned of his part-time role as city defender. There would’ve been hell to pay.

 

“Well, you know I happen to agree with her about this being a bad idea,” Marinette said, chuckling a bit to lighten the mood, “-but I also believe that it’s  _ your _ decision to make.”

 

Adrien smiled, in spite of the situation. It was good to know that even in spite of everything that happened, there would always be some people behind him 100%.

 

**********

 

Everything Adrien had planned on telling Gabriel was thrown out the window the moment the boy saw his father. Usually well-dressed with styled hair, Gabriel was now a complete mess. There were dark circles under his eyes, his hair was a disaster, and there was a crack in his glasses. A gigantic bruise seemed to take up the entire left side of his face.

 

“Father!” Adrien exclaimed in spite of himself, his voice betraying a deep horror at seeing the man who raised him in such a predicament.

 

“Adrien!” Gabriel’s eyes lit up at seeing his son, “Don’t you worry about me, I’m just-”

 

“-beat up!” Adrien cut in, “What happened to you?”

 

“Turns out that a man who mind controls children and humiliates the public on a regular basis isn’t terribly popular with the other inmates.” Gabriel sighed, “And the guards haven’t seemed especially inclined to give me additional protection.”

 

“Can’t imagine why.” A snarky voice cut in, and Adrien looked down in annoyance to see Plagg emerging from his shirt.

 

“Plagg, hide!” Adrien insisted, but the kwami’s eyes remained on Gabriel.

 

“You and I both know that the kid won’t say what needs to be said.” Plagg said to the former designer, “So I’m gonna do it for him: you’re a shitty parent and a lousy person who deserves everything that’s happened to you! It doesn’t matter whether what you wanted was good or not. In the end, you were even willing to attack your own son,  _ after _ learning who he was!”

 

Awkward silence filled the space between the three of them after that outburst. Gabriel’s face, which usually concealed his emotions well, was visibly distraught. Adrien found himself looking away as he wiped the tears from his eyes. He was sick of crying, he realized. It felt like it was all he did in front of his father nowadays. 

 

“It’s true…” Gabriel mused, “I really do deserve what’s happened to me...” The man’s eyes fixed on Adrien afterwards though, and he spoke slowly, as if choosing each word carefully, “...but Adrien deserves none of it. Nathalie should have never been involved, and the girl Lila shouldn’t have been a part of this either.”

 

“So tell me this, kwami.” The former villain looked back at Plagg, “You may have put one foul man behind bars, but what about the burden it’s placed on so many others? Have things truly worked out for the better?”

 

“ _ Yeah.” _ Plagg spat, “Nooroo and Dusuu have been found now, and aren’t  _ slaves _ to your evil plans anymore. Adrien has a parent that actually  _ makes time _ for him now. That “girl Lila” is actually forced to be accountable for her actions for once.” Plagg glared straight into Gabriel’s harsh cerulean eyes, “So  _ yeah,  _ I’d say things are just peachy now.”

 

“You’re not wrong.” Gabriel shook his head grimly, “And considering that Emilie did return in the end, I can’t exactly consider myself unsuccessful, can I?”

 

“ _ Unfortunately.”  _ Plagg sighed, and then looked apologetic as he glanced back at Adrien, “No offense, kid.”

 

“None taken.” Adrien nodded, and struggled to make eye contact with his father. He gently grabbed Plagg out of the air, pulling the kwami back into his jacket. Contrary to what his small companion might think, Adrien didn’t need Plagg or Ladybug to say this for him. This was between him and his father.

 

“There’s a real problem here…” Adrien began awkwardly.

 

“Oh?” Gabriel’s eyes seemed to pierce him, but Adrien finally found the courage to look him in the eyes.

 

“Things may have worked out,  _ Father.”  _ Adrien took a deep breath, dialling back the snide in his voice, “But what if they hadn’t? Down there, in your lair, when you still thought our Miraculous were the only way to save Mother…” Gabriel folded his arms across his chest, momentarily distracting the boy, but Adrien was able to continue.

 

“...When I told you that taking somebody else’s life for hers was wrong, and that  _ everything _ you were doing was wrong, you were going to fight me anyways.” Adrien shook his head, feeling more anger bubbling at the memory.

 

“The problem is that you only stopped because there was another way.” Adrien managed, a  bitter edge creeping into his voice, “-and if Nathalie and Fu hadn’t stepped in, there’s a real chance that-” Adrien was forced to pause, his anger giving away in favor of sadness. Still not wanting his father to see his tears, Adrien looked away again to regain his composure.

 

“A real chance that…?” Gabriel inquired, a very nervous note to his voice now.

 

“...A real chance that you’d have killed me.” He finished, “And I just need to know… Would you have done it? Would you have really hurt or even killed  _ me _ in order to bring back Mother? Is my life worth that little to you?” An awkward silence sat between them as Gabriel was clearly taken aback by the question.

 

“And not only that…” Adrien pushed on, “But the night that started this, when I got akumatized. You said that you wished you’d lost me instead of  _ her;  _ is that how you really felt? Or was it just something you said to get me upset enough for an akuma?”

 

“Adrien…” Gabriel attempted to sound soothing, but the glass prevented any of the reassuring physical contact he wanted to provide. Plagg’s eyes lit up with even more anger as he glared back at Gabriel, but he was clearly waiting for an answer.

 

And unfortunately, Gabriel had no answer to provide. 

 

He had no idea how to tell his son that he had done neither of those things. That he hadn’t meant it when he said he wished Emilie with him and Adrien gone, and that it  _ hadn’t _ been simply a ruse to get him akumatized. He wasn’t sure  _ how _ on Earth he was going to get across that he would’ve never  _ killed  _ Adrien, even while using deadly force to claim his Miraculous.

 

There was no way he could justify over a year of calculated attacks against the boy by simply saying that he didn’t know it was him.

 

So Gabriel said nothing. Instead, he just stared awkwardly through the glass at the angry kwami and crying boy, fully realizing everything he had lost to get where he was now.

 

Sure, Emilie had been saved, but he would never again feel her warm embrace, or Adrien’s. His actions had led to Nathalie’s arrest as well as his own, and they were both going to spend the rest of their lives in prison. He had completely destroyed his relationships with everybody he knew, all to achieve something he could’ve done without hurting a fly.

 

_ I’ve fucked up.  _ Gabriel realized, a cold feeling coursing through him, as Adrien stood up to leave, still wiping the tears from his eyes.

 

“This was a mistake…” Adrien said weakly, “I- I’m gonna go now…”

 

“Wait, Adrien!” Gabriel rose, fearing he might never see his son again, “Please! I love you, I’ve just made some bad decisions. I-” But the sound of the door slamming cut him off, as his son left. Plagg gave him one last nasty look before phasing through the door, after his charge, leaving the former designer on his own to wallow in his despair.

 

The final insult came when Gabriel realized that he would be the perfect prey for an akuma right now, but there was nobody cruel enough to take advantage of his distress in control of the Butterfly. There hopefully never would be again.

 

**********

 

“Is he in there already?” Nino asked crossly, walking up to Marinette with his arms folded, Chloe right beside him.

 

“Yeah…” The raven-haired girl nodded grimly, “ _ Unfortunately.” _

 

“Shit.” Chloe muttered, “Would’ve liked to have had at least one of us in there with him.” The girl shook her head, “I would’ve loved to have given that scumbag a piece of my mind-”

 

“Get in line.” Nino said glumly, and all three teenagers nodded in agreement.

 

“Adrien!” Marinette exclaimed suddenly, rushing forward to embrace her boyfriend as he exited the visiting area.

 

“Hey guys…” Adrien sniffled, returning her embrace, his eyes lighting up as he saw his best friends, “Nino! Chloe! How’d you know I’d be here?”

 

“Your girlfriend snitched.” Nino laughed, also giving Adrien a hug, “Figured that the more of us here, the better.”

 

“-Even if we don’t approve.” All four looked in surprise to see the disgruntled face of Emilie Agreste approaching.

 

A former actress, Emilie Agreste was tall, blonde, and beautiful. Her brilliant green eyes were a perfect match of her son’s, and anybody with eyes could figure out that the two were related. Right now, however, the woman was clearly annoyed, as her explicit command had been blatantly ignored.

 

“Mrs. Agreste, we can explain-” Marinette stepped forward, clearly ready to negotiate, but the blonde woman held up a hand, prompting Marinette to immediately stop.

 

“I’m not angry.” She said, even though her expression said otherwise, “I understand that you wanted to see him, so I just have to ask-” She sighed before continuing, “-did you find what you were looking for?”

 

All eyes went back to Adrien. His brow was furrowed in concentration as he considered her question.  _ Did he find what he was looking for? _ He supposed that the correct answer was  _ no, _ since his father had basically not denied wanting to kill him, but perhaps the trip wasn’t a complete waste of his time.

 

“No.” Adrien admitted, “But I’m still glad I came.” His mother, girlfriend, and best friends all frowned in confusion, so he quickly clarified, “-Because now I’ve realized something. What I’ve been looking for isn’t here, and Gabriel Agreste can’t give it to me.” He gestured at the building behind him, as a smile crept onto his face.

 

“What I’m looking for… I already have it.” He declared, positively beaming now, “I’ve got the best friends I could ask for,” He smiled at Chloe and Nino, “-and the best girlfriend in the world!” Realizing he’d forgotten someone, he quickly looked at his mom, “...And the best mother, too!” He added hastily, prompting Emilie to snort in amusement.

 

“ _ Right.” _ She said sarcastically, but any anger in her demeanor seemed to have melted away, and she couldn’t keep the smile off of her face.

 

“What I’ve wanted…” Adrien said softly, “...is a family. My own father may not be the man for the job... but I have you guys, and that's more than enough..."

 

Emotional from her boyfriend's speech, Marinette rushed forward, pulling her boyfriend into a passionate kiss that would certainly earn a lecture from Mrs. Agreste later, but neither of them cared in the moment. Nino and even Chloe couldn’t help the smiles on their faces as they looked at their friends. She may not approve of Marinette Dupain-Cheng, but seeing Adrien happy with her was enough.

 

Adrien had lost a lot throughout this whole ordeal, but none of that was on his mind as he returned his girlfriend’s kiss.

 

...For the two of them loved each other, and weren’t afraid to show it. And that was all that mattered.

 

_ END _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And thus the story reaches its conclusion.
> 
> In case you missed it, Nathalie, Gabriel, and Lila are all in prison, And Chloe has been healed. Not a perfect conclusion by any means, but perhaps the best any of our protagonists could've reasonably hoped for.
> 
> Just another thanks to everybody who stuck with this until the end!

**Author's Note:**

> Just noticed: This took exactly one month to complete, 4-3-19 until 5-3-19. Didn't even mean to, but this pleases my occasionally OCD mind.


End file.
